Latest / The Side Hustle Career Podcast with Fexingo: Second Income, Freelancing While Employed / How a Chef Built a 12K Side Hustle in Meal Prep Kits
Transcript
- Lucas: So there's this guy, Marcus, a line cook at a steakhouse in Austin. He's been cooking professionally for twelve years, and in August 2025, he decided to test an idea: what if he made extra meal prep kits from his own kitchen and sold them to his gym buddies? Luna: A line cook starting a side hustle in meal prep. That feels like the most natural fit ever. What made him think he could actually charge for it? Lucas: Well, his friends kept asking him to make them 'something healthy' because they were tired of bland chicken and rice. He started by making a few extra portions when he cooked for himself on Sundays. Within two months, he had twelve regular customers, each paying fifty dollars a week for five meals. Luna: Twelve customers at fifty bucks a week is twenty-four hundred a month. That's a decent start. But you said he's at twelve thousand now. How did he go from twelve to sixty customers? Lucas: He credits Instagram. He started posting short videos of his meal prep process, no fancy editing, just his phone on a tripod. He showed the ingredients, the macros, the final containers stacked in his fridge. After about six weeks, a local fitness influencer shared one of his posts, and that brought in his next wave of customers. Luna: So it was really about leverage. He wasn't just selling food, he was selling a visual promise of 'I'll make this easy for you.' Lucas: Exactly. And that's when he realized he needed a proper setup. Cooking for twelve people in a home kitchen is one thing. Sixty is another. So in April, he started renting a commercial kitchen space for three hundred dollars a month, only on Sundays. Luna: That's a pretty low cost to scale like that. How does he structure his delivery? Because that's usually where these things get complicated. Lucas: He keeps it simple. He delivers once a week, on Sundays, to two pickup points: a gym parking lot and a coffee shop. No home delivery. That saves him time and money. He does all the cooking in one six-hour block, and then he packs the containers and delivers them in about two hours. Luna: So he's looking at about eight hours of work on a Sunday. For sixty customers at fifty dollars each, that's three thousand dollars a week, so twelve thousand a month. That's a solid side hustle. Lucas: But the margins matter. He told me his food cost runs about thirty-five percent, the kitchen rental is about seventy-five dollars per Sunday, and packaging costs him about a dollar fifty per kit. So after all that, he's taking home roughly sixty percent of that twelve thousand. Luna: That's really good. So he's making about seven grand a month in profit. That's not just a side hustle, that's a part-time income. Lucas: And he's still working his full-time line cook job, forty hours a week. His side hustle is essentially another part-time job, but he says it doesn't feel like work because he's cooking for people who actually appreciate it. Luna: But I imagine there were some bumps. What was the mistake you mentioned earlier that almost killed it in month two? Lucas: He got a health inspection violation because he was using a home kitchen without a proper license. He didn't know that in Texas, you need a cottage food operation permit for home-based food businesses, and meal prep kits fall under that. He had to pay a fine and shut down for two weeks. Luna: That's a scary moment. How did he handle it without losing all his customers? Lucas: He was transparent. He told his customers via email that he was upgrading to a licensed commercial kitchen to comply with regulations, and that he'd be back in two weeks. He offered a ten percent discount on their first order back. He only lost two customers, and he gained a bunch of respect for being upfront. Luna: That's a smart move. It's amazing how being honest can actually build trust. So what about scaling further? Is he thinking about quitting his day job? Lucas: He's not, actually. He says the line cook job gives him health insurance and a steady paycheck, and the side hustle gives him creative freedom and extra cash. He's happy with the balance. He wants to grow to a hundred customers, but he's not in a rush. Luna: That's a really grounded approach. So many people think you have to go all-in on the side hustle, but he's showing you can do both. I love that. Lucas: And that's the theme of today's episode, really. You can build something meaningful without having to quit your job. Marcus's story is a perfect example of how a small, personal skill can turn into a real income stream if you're smart about it. Luna: If you're listening and thinking about starting your own side hustle, Marcus's story is a great blueprint. And if you found today's episode useful, you know what keeps this show going. Lucas: Yeah, listener support is why we can keep these conversations ad-free. If this episode gave you a new idea or a practical step, you can buy us a coffee at buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo. It helps us keep doing this. Luna: Even a small contribution makes a difference. We appreciate every bit. Lucas: So back to Marcus. One thing I found interesting is how he prices his kits. He doesn't just charge for the food, he charges for the convenience. He knows his audience is busy professionals who would spend more on takeout, so his fifty dollars a week is actually a bargain for them. Luna: That's a good point. He's not competing with grocery stores, he's competing with restaurants and meal delivery apps. That's a different market. Lucas: Exactly. He's selling time and health. And that's why he can charge a premium. He also offers a few different plans: a basic five-meal kit, a high-protein option, and a family plan for two. That gives him a range of price points. Luna: That's smart. So what's the one thing he'd tell someone who wants to start a similar side hustle? Lucas: He says start small, but start with a real customer. Don't just cook for yourself and hope people will buy. Find one friend who's willing to pay, and then use that feedback to improve. Once you have ten paying customers, you have a business. Luna: That's a great takeaway. It's about validating the idea before you invest a ton of time and money. Lucas: And that's why we love featuring stories like this. It's not about huge, risky leaps. It's about small, steady steps that compound. Marcus went from cooking extra portions on a Sunday to a twelve thousand dollar a month side hustle in under a year. Luna: That's inspiring. And it makes me think about what other skills people have that they could turn into a side income. Cooking is just one example. Lucas: Absolutely. Whether it's graphic design, tutoring, or even pet sitting, the principles are the same: find a niche, start small, and be consistent. Marcus's story is a great case study in that. Luna: Well, thanks for sharing this one, Lucas. I feel like I could go cook something right now. Lucas: Ha, I'd be careful with that. But seriously, if you're thinking about a side hustle, take a page from Marcus's book. Start with what you're good at, and don't be afraid to charge for it.