Today we’d like to introduce you to Cassandra.
Hi Cassandra, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstories.
My name is Cassandra, my nickname is Cass and my foodie Instagram account is @casserolebites. I work as a data engineer by day, and often I say that it helps fund all my foodie adventures! Nice to meet you all!
I was born and raised in New York City and lived in Queens for the majority of my life. With NYC being the “melting pot” of America, I was surrounded by a lot of different ethnicities and cultures – and with that, a lot of different types of food!
With respect to food, my parents taught me that it can be a fun experience to try everything at least once, and I really take that to heart. I’m probably one of the least picky eaters I know – the only things I’ve shied away from are spicy foods because, unfortunately, my tolerance for spice is super low!
From a young age, I was able to experience so many different cultures’ foods in a short amount of time. I grew up on my grandmother’s cooking, which had roots in her hometown in Taishan, China, as well as in Hong Kong. My dad also primarily cooked Chinese food. My mom often found new restaurants around the neighborhood to try as well. And my classmates taught me all about the beauty of scouring across our city to find the best food spots after school!
My childhood set the foundation for my love for food now. I’m always on the hunt for new foods to cook and restaurants to visit. My foodie Instagram came as a product of that. My 2022 New Year’s resolutions included finding a spot to store all the food pictures I had saved on my phone, and I found Instagram as the perfect outlet for that.
I love the overwhelming support I get from the foodie communities on Instagram and find joy in knowing that others are enjoying my content.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
For growing my Instagram, it hasn’t always been a smooth road! I didn’t use Instagram a lot beforehand, so figuring out how social media worked was fairly tough.
In the beginning, my content wasn’t that great (poor lighting, bad angles, etc) and I didn’t even really know how to use the hashtags. I’m glad I had some good friends already in the foodie community show me the ropes!
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I really enjoy taking photos of the different food I eat! I’m based in the NYC/Jersey City area, so a lot of my content has been focused on restaurants around the area.
I’ve been posting some food pictures I’d taken in the past every Thursday as part of a #tbt series, which has featured some eats from my travels in Hong Kong, Japan, Tennessee, Michigan, Washington, and more! I’m proud that I can use my platform to promote restaurants and share my love of food with everyone.
On top of that, I really love how I’ve been able to connect with other foodies around the world.
What sort of changes are you expecting over the next 5-10 years?
I’ve definitely seen more and more food Instagrammers and bloggers pop up, which is exciting! There has been a lot of content cross-posting on multiple social media platforms, which I think is necessary to build up their brand and get maximum visibility – so definitely expecting this to amplify for newer food bloggers. Additionally, I’m seeing Instagram heavily encourage users to post more Reels instead of static picture posts, so also expecting more Instagrammers to take advantage of that to showcase their cooking and dining experiences.
Contact Info:
- Email: casserolebites@gmail.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/casserolebites/
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/user_details?userid=r34gPxmODD22kTRGmrH4lQ
Image Credits
@casserolebites
