Meet Timothy Zubkoff | Founder, Chef

We had the good fortune of connecting with Timothy Zubkoff and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Timothy, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
The grand thought behind PHOENIX CULINARY COLLECTIVE was to create not only a company, but a COLLECTIVE that focuses on the symbiotic relationship between Food, Music, Arts, and Entertainment. We started as a very small team back in September of 2017 with one venue we were operating out of regularly. Fast forward through a pandemic and 6 years later, we are now preferred vendors at 5 separate venues in the music industry and beyond. The thought behind the “big leap” into self-employment was not only noticing a gap in the market when it came to music venues selling sub-par food, but also the lack of TEAM based employment options across the board. As a collective, we stress that everyone has a voice, anybody’s dish can get featured at any event, and operational roundtables regularly occur to ensure the clients and fans are getting the best possible service both inside and outside of the kitchen.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
The work of PHXCULINARY is dream for me. But, let’t make this very clear, there is no glamour on our side of the industry. It’s early mornings, late nights, no sleep, and A LOT of back and forth. We feed locals, music fans, crews, and bands alike.

I believe that what sets us apart from the our competitors is the ability to work the problems at hand and roll with the punches. As you can imagine, working in the music industry is hectic enough. Now imagine handling food & beverage in the music industry. Last minute changes, cancellations, additions, and whole events. We gather the teams necessary to execute the event and problems at hand and they go out into the world and SLAY everything they do. For this I am forever grateful.

Getting to where we are definitely had its challenges. As with all food operations, staffing issues remain the biggest one we have to date. Finding the staff that meets our standards as a collective is no easy feat. However, I truly feel that we have captured a niche in this city and throughout the state that is worth fighting for. We are not the ordinary, we dare to be different.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
So, I have been in Phoenix for 8 years now. This city and state has so much to offer that this is a very difficult question so here are some places by category.

VENUES:
The Van Buren
Walter Studios
Walter Where?House
Crescent Ballroom
Valley Bar

RESTAURANTS:
Forno 301
Walter Studios
Sandfish Sushi and Whiskey
Brick and Barley
Presidio Cocina
PieBar (Strawberry, AZ)
Mariposa (Sedona)
Dahl and Deluca (Sedona)

SIGHTSEEING/THINGS TO DO:
Eating/Hiking/Sightseeing in Tucson, AZ
Goldfield Ghost Town
Superstition Mountains
Desert Botanical Gardens
Hiking/Eating in Sedona, AZ
Camping in Strawberry, AZ

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
Where do we even start?!? I would like to give a HUGE shoutout to Jessica Hill, former GM of The Van Buren in Downtown Phoenix, for taking a chance on us in the beginning. All of our vendors across the valley that help us get innovative with their bombshell concepts, and most importantly Joel Felix. Joel and I came across each other over the pandemic working a small Bar Mitzvah booked though Whitney Wingfield, whom y’all know very well. I was bussing tables, Joel was working for the caterer on site and I noticed his work ethic right away. We were all in a weird position being that we were still on the tail-end of the pandemic. I offered Joel some work at our “comeback” event in Spring of 2021 and the rest is history. Joel is now Operations Manager for the entire collective and we have recently gone into business together working on a traveling taco concept, Tacos dos Güeros. Without Joel, none of the growth since the pandemic would be possible. He is a force to be reckoned with in this city and I am happy to call him and his loved ones family.

Website: www.phxculinarycollective.com

Instagram: phxculinary

Facebook: phxculinary

Image Credits
PRIMARY PHOTO FOR PUBLICATION: CRED: CASSIE HEPLER