Southern fried chicken wings, a hot-pastrami sandwich, biscuits and gravy. Sides of mac and cheese, french fries, or fennel sausages. And for dessert, grab a boozy shake with bourbon brown sugar syrup and chocolate, or a warm chocolate chip cookie.
The culinary mind responsible for such delight has a seat reserved just for you. But she isn’t running a local sports bar, and the fare is not what you would expect. The comfort-food menu at Sticky Fingers Diner in Washington DC’s trendy H Street corridor is entirely plant-based.
You may have heard of Doron Petersan, ’02 AGNR dietetics graduate, and owner and president of Sticky Fingers Sweets and Eats, a highly recognized brand in the DC area, which includes the diner and a production-only bakery with a national retail distribution that operates out of DC’s Columbia Heights neighborhood. The celebrated baker, chef and entrepreneur is a two-time winner of the Food Network’s Cupcake Wars competition, whose chocolate chip cookies are nationally famous. Although she evangelizes a vegan lifestyle, she promises that her products don’t compromise on taste, comfort, or fun factor. She wants you to indulge, while also stepping outside of your culinary comfort zone.
“I went vegan kicking and screaming, and recognize that it’s hard to force your taste buds to follow, but I promise it's not that scary,” said Petersan during a recent Zoom chat. “Eating this way represents a larger investment in choosing a lifestyle. My main mission is to create fun and tasty foods that do not use animal products, so you have options to replace non-vegan counterparts. If your first try tastes good, then maybe the next one will too.”
Petersan’s philosophy is largely rooted in principles aligned with “Nutrition Through the Life Cycle,” a popular text focused on nutritional recommendations throughout various stages of the human lifespan. During her time with AGNR, she studied both on-campus and abroad and zeroed in on concepts dealing with how to feed yourself off the land and community-based nutrition. The entrepreneur lifestyle was never on her radar as an undergraduate until she took a third year food science class that changed her entire perspective on vegan and vegetarian influences in the food system.
“An AGNR food science class led me to developing a business plan where I could apply this type of food to a more general population,” explained Petersan. “Around this time I also started candying and experimenting with different combinations and ingredient interactions. Soon I was making cakes and people started offering me money!”
In addition to her diner, Petersan recently launched a nationwide delivery service, a decision she made in the early months of the pandemic when orders for parties ended, and in-store sales plummeted overnight. Stickyfingersbakery.com offers online distribution of Petersan’s patented baking mixes, decorating kits, cookies and brownies, and seasonal specialties like cake pops and challah bread. The biggest and best sellers are her chocolate chip cookies.
Perhaps the most impressive aspect of Petersan’s business is her open invitation for competition. She isn’t interested in cornering the vegan food market, rather she encourages every bakery and restaurant to offer vegan options. She firmly believes that if vendors make the leap, the customers will flock.
But in the end, for Petersan, the key to her success is replicating the appearance, flavor, and texture of animal based products in her vegan counterparts. Take her description of her reuben sandwich as an example.
“It’s made with seitan, otherwise known as wheat meat, which is used in a lot of applications. We work really hard on its texture by smoking and brining it, which gives it an exciting flavor. It’s a lot of trial and error for us and playing in the sandbox. Then we add delicious compliments like mustard and other flavor enhancements.”
Come and indulge on Sticky Fingers food, whether you’re local in DC or not. Peterson can’t wait for you to jump in.
by Graham Binder : Momentum Summer 2022
