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| Sue Bussinger, General Manager |
| Sue’s career path in food-related jobs led to Haggen in 1994 as an in-store home economist. In that role, coordinating guest’s catering needs in a single store groomed her for involvement in the creation of Market Street Catering in 2001. Seeing the original concept come to life and guiding the growth to achieve the business vision continue to motivate her. By working with a staff of experts who blend their passions for excellent food and excellent guest care, serving the Market Street Catering guest has been rewarding. In her free time, she enjoys sailing (and cooking on the boat), cross-country skiing, walking area trails and spending time with family and friends. Great food is always on her travel itinerary. |
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| Jessica Lupo, Sales Manager |
| Jessica joined Haggen in 1997 and has been with Market Street Catering for four years. Her combined thirteen year experience in food service and a bachelor’s degree in Business from Western Washington University in Bellingham set the stage for her promotion to Catering Sales Manager in 2007. Jessica is a leader in the growth of Market Street Catering as she has held mutliple positions including Catering Production Manager and been involved with mulitple technical projects. Her attention to detail and high standard of quality are at the core of the demanding office and delivery operation that she oversees for 3 counties. Her commitment to our guests was recognized in 2003 when she was named Quality Service Star of the Year. When not moving smoothly through the organized chaos of a busy office, Jess has a passion for gardening, animals, healthy living, and remodeling her home. |
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| Steve Hanft, Full Service Manager |
| Steve joined Market Street Catering two years ago as a catering consultant bringing with him 8 years of hospitality experience and a degree in business from Western Washington University in Bellingham. A career in food & beverage management at Resort Semiahmoo, a leading Northwest resort, prepared him to step into the position of Full Service Manager and develop this new level of service with a commitment to excellence. Steve’s friendly personality and desire to exceed your expectations, makes him the perfect person to pamper your guests and lead our team of service professionals at attending to every detail of your event. When not planning your next event, Steve enjoys every minute of his time with family, plays computer games, fishes, and sketches. |
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| Bryan Weener, Executive Chef |
| A graduate of Culinary Institute of America with six years of experience as an Executive Sous Chef and seven years as an Executive Chef, Bryan brings his passion for all-things-food to Market Street Catering. He developed his culinary career in top-rated restaurants in San Francisco and Seattle. His Seattle career was built at Sazerac Restaurant and 96 Union Restaurant. Before joining Market Street Catering, Bryan was with Resort Semiahmoo where he managed banquet sales, four restaurants and a full-scale in-house bakery. He assisted nationally known chefs in 2006 for the Annual Master’s of Food and Wine at the Park Hyatt in Carmel, California. His love for food, from selecting the best-in-season ingredients to the blending of those ingredients in a way that will have your guests savoring every bite, set the stage for a special food experience. Bryan carries his passion for food into his life as he tends his garden and farm animals, hand packs with love his jars of “Tall Paul’s Pickles”, fishes, and spends his time with his wife and toddler son. He often shares his favorite dishes with family and friends around his table at home. |
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| Andrew Garcia, Sous Chef |
| With nearly ten years of hands-on experience in fast-paced, deadline-driven foodservice environments, Andrew joined the Haggen family in late 2006. He brings with him a wealth of diverse communication and production techniques, in addition to a sincere love for helping others. These skills, coupled with his technical aptitude allow him to seamlessly round out the catering kitchen leadership team. Andrew loves the challenge of creating new menu items and constantly strives for perfection. Always the consummate entertainer, during his free time, Andrew enjoys watching movies and hosting parties for his friends. |
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| Llodia Guerra, Catering Production Manager South Central Production |
| Llodia joined Haggen to assist in the growth of catering in Snohomish County. Preparing for a career in food began with an AA degree from Everett Community College and a culinary degree from Seattle Central Community College. She has spent the last seven years working for another Northwest company, Schwartz Brothers, at their well-known Daniel’s Broiler in Bellevue. With catering experience at Yarrow Bay Grill in Kirkland and assisting with the opening of Canyon’s Restaurant in Mountlake Terrace, Llodia has honed her culinary skills in popular upscale Northwest venues. She also gained commercial food service experience in a Seattle area software company. Llodia enjoys new challenges in the culinary field, and looks forward to an opportunity to serve Haggen Market Street Catering guests in her home area of Snohomish County. She loves the task of planning and organizing for the day’s production in the kitchen to assure everything runs smoothly. Her easy smile and great laugh are a give-away that she loves what she is doing. Her husband and two young children keep her smiling at home. |
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| Karen Dragutin, Specialty Cake Designer |
| Karen, who hails from Dallas/Ft. Worth, Texas, started decorating cakes 32 years ago. Add to that her experience as a baker and pastry chef for the Queen Mary floating hotel in Long Beach, California, and cake decorating and consulting for television commercials in California, and you have a seasoned veteran. Karen joined Haggen seven years ago as a Bakery Lead Decorator; and in 2002 she was selected to research modern methods of wedding cake design. She played a crucial part in the development of our Premier flavors and setting the style for our wedding cake program. Attending the Culinary Institute of America in Napa Valley sparked a passion for studying the most renowned sugar artists across the country; and, as a result, she has gained the knowledge and expertise for providing beautifully created modern styles and gourmet flavors that have brought exultant guest comments. She is proudly training new cake designers, instilling the same passion and commitment of providing excellence in their sugar creations. While not baking and decorating cakes, Karen spends her free time researching new styles, sketching her mental inspirations and entertaining friends and neighbors in the home she shares with her husband (who loves to cook). When given the opportunity, she loves to dance! |
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| Raven Britt, Cake Designer |
| Raven has been decorating cakes for over 11 years and has been with Haggen over five years. She earned a Certificate in Restaurant and Hotel Management and Culinary Arts as well as a AAS degree in Commercial Baking from Lake Washington Technical College with focused training in sugar arts. She started with Market Street Catering in May of 2006 and looks forward to many years of artistic creation with this company. In her free time she enjoys gardening, crafting, and spending time with her family. |
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| Nancy Hilgert, Catering Consultant |
| Nancy has been with Haggen Market Street Catering for two years and brings with her over twelve years experience working for Haggen. As a Produce Manager, Nancy applied the Haggen standard for only the freshest produce with her sales and guest service skills learned at Nordstrom to become that helpful expert you looked for while shopping. Now, that experience and her passion for great food compliment the role she plays for Market Street Catering. Nancy’s friendly personality and her desire to exceed expectations are evident as she gives one-on-one attention to each guest. Her familiarity with the store puts her in command, as she helps select the product of every department to suit your event. Outside of work, Nancy has a love of traveling to warm climates. Ask her about some of the great restaurants she has eaten in while visiting the Caribbean and other parts of the world. |
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| Nathan Solbeck, Catering Consultant |
| Nathan joined Market Street Catering in April of 2007. He is a graduate of Western Culinary Institute and has over two years experience working in fine dining. He has been involved in all aspects of catering from planning the menu to preparing the dishes to executing the event. Nate has a true passion for food that consumes his work and free time where he can be found hunting for forest mushrooms or fishing on the banks of local rivers and streams. |
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| Tina Gisvold, Event Planner |
| Tina has been with Market Street Catering for three years and brings with her over 15 years experience in the food and beverage industry. Her experience in fine dining and golf course catering management gives her knowledge of all aspects of the an event, from the planning to the set up and service. She brings a love of fine dining and a passion for presentation and event ambiance. Her warm personality and the pride in her work shines through in the personal attention she’ll give to you. In her spare time she does enjoy using her creative flair to prepare amazing pupu platters for her friends and family. Even her dog is a vegetarian with an appreciative palette. |
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| Lynda Mann, Event Planner |
| Lynda recently joined Market Street Catering as a full service event planner bringing with her 8 years of hospitality experience and a degree in theater from Western Washington University in Bellingham. Prior to joining the Market Street Catering team, Lynda was the Wedding Sales Manager for Semiahmoo Resort. Throughout her time at the resort, Semiahmoo won multiple awards as the premier northwest wedding destination from Seattle Bride and The Knot. Her weddings were featured in numerous publications of Seattle Bride and Seattle Metropolitan Bride and Groom. Lynda’s attention to detail and commitment to stay on the cutting edge of industry trends will ensure that your next event will be an unforgettable one. When she’s not at the office, snowboarding, softball and floating around on a lake are some of her favorite activities. Lynda loves being outdoors and spending time with her spoiled black lab. |