A Vegan Food Prep Business in the Bronx? This Native Is Making It Happen

How did veganism become a part of your life?

It all started three years ago while living in Los Angeles. I was trying to change my lifestyle and I’ve always been very into nutrition. I understood veganism, but I wasn’t really sure what it was until the instructor of a weight-loss challenge I participated in challenged us to go on a raw foods diet for two weeks. After I completed it, I realized I liked this, but I just wasn’t sure what it was. While researching raw dieting and raw recipes, the word “vegan” popped up a lot. I started following all these YouTubers and Instagramers, and that’s when I learned about veganism and the word itself. I learned how veganism is not just a diet, it’s a lifestyle.

Where did the idea of a meal-prep business come from?

When I created vegan dishes for my friends in South Korea, everyone was, like, “Oh my god, this is amazing! You should run a business like this!” I was putting everything on my Instagram and people were excited and interested. Eventually, one of my good friends, Sunil Mahtani, said, “You should consider meal prep. You have this Latin twist and this passion for it. You would beat the Korean market in a heartbeat!” I was, like, “Nah, I’m good. I don’t like cooking like that. I cook for you guys for fun. I can’t cook for the public like that.” He said, “Well, you should consider it.”

What finally pushed you to pursue this?

A few weeks after the initial conversation with Sunil he said, “You should prep my meals. You should just cook your heart out and stuff my fridge with a whole bunch of different things.” I went back to my office and thought of the name: It’s Blenlly Catering. I went shopping, got to his town, and started cooking. We cooked for 14 hours. When we finished cooking he said, “There’s no way that anyone could cook with so much passion.” He said, “This is your it, Blenlly. You keep asking me what you’re going to do when you go back to America. Well, this is it.” [Sunil] offered to help me create a business plan. One day, he promoted it on Facebook and then I get another customer. Then boom, I get a third customer. Then a fourth. Then this became my weekend gig in South Korea. It’s Blenlly Catering grew and it was working. Then I knew I could take this back to New York.

How did the idea of Next Stop Vegan come about?

One day, I started envisioning this business. Is it going to be in the Bronx? Do I want to cater to Latinos? Do I want to cater just to vegans? What name am I going to put? I went on Facebook and asked my friends to help me create a name for this business. My friend posted a motivational quote that began with “Next stop… ” I was thinking, “Next stop? Oh my god, it’s like [the trains in] New York City. ‘Next stop Kingsbridge Road.’ ‘Next stop Fordham Road.’ ‘Next Stop Vegan!’”

How did you get the business started again in America?

My sister said, “Blenlly, you promised me you were going to cook for me when you came back. I’m waiting for you to cook for me.” She became my first client [in America]. I was doing a lot of Asian dishes that I learned in Korea because I didn’t know how to make Dominican food. My sister was, like, “You know, Blenlly, you’re doing great but you really have to tweak it a little bit. Maybe I could help you tweak it so that it’s vegan Dominican.” She felt that if I incorporated Dominican sazon, it would be much better. I told her that she would have to handle it because I didn’t know anything about that.

How did your family become a part of Next Stop Vegan?

[My sister Ana] cooked vegan sancocho, which is a dish from the Dominican Republic. She tested it with her husband; he loved it. He gave it to her son; he liked it. She brought it to work; her colleagues loved it. It really tasted like sancocho, so we decided to put it on the menu. I promoted vegan sancocho on Instagram and everyone was commenting, sending DMs, texts like, “What is this?” I was, like, “Ana, we’re having inquiries. Are you going to join this business?” That’s when she decided to help.

Then, we only had three customers: my two aunts and her. Fast forward, my sister’s colleague [became a customer], then my cousin, then another and another. These people were coming from Brooklyn, Long Island, different parts of New York. At that point, I knew we had a business and this was serious. My sister was, like, “We need to step it up.” My mom then joined forces. My aunt would come over and help. My nephews, my niece, everyone was coming in and helping. As we were transitioning into this business together, they were also transitioning into the [vegan] lifestyle.

What’s it like owning this business?

As a business owner, there’s a lot of fear: “With all the investment that we put in, will this be flourishing? Will this be how we envisioned it to be?” At the end of the day, one of the main things that I live by is taking risks. I’m very much into living life on the edge. Life is short. I don’t want to be the person that thinks, “I wish I did it when I was 25.” I want to be that person that can share the story about my experience and tell the younger generation what happened and how they can make it better. For me, there’s fear behind the business and having this establishment and reputation. At the same time, what’s the worst that could happen? I take pride on how many people we're already helping. How many animals we’re saving. It’s all nerve-wracking, but it’s a good nerve-wracking.

Blenlly’s Story Continues

The business became a family affair as more relatives came on board to help prep the food and, along the way, started adopting a vegan lifestyle. As the demand increased, the business outgrew Blenlly’s mom’s kitchen and into her sisters’, until finally establishing a place of its own in Morris Park. When you peek through the storefront of Next Stop Vegan, you’ll see an empty space, for now. Blenlly explained that their location, which opened just a few months ago, was meant to be their space to continue their meal-prep business. As we discussed the vegan resources available in the Bronx, Blenlly explained that she felt the pressure. “That’s why we’re gonna have to open up. People want this food to go. So, my mom, my sister and I are thinking we are going to have to open, because of the lack of options.”

Without the bells and whistle of a typical restaurant, this former Chinese eatery turned home for Next Stop Vegan truly felt as such: a home. Blenlly has a natural welcoming aura that made all of us feel like old friends catching up. Describing her journey to Next Stop Vegan was mesmerizing. “I still get goosebumps when I share this story,” she said. “I still get emotional. I have yet to ground myself and recognize that this happened and is still happening. It’s happening so fast! It’s so surreal.”

Watching Blenlly interact with the community as they knocked on her doors—and they knocked often—told me that this is a business founded with community first. Each time, she kindly explained the business, sharing her potential customers’ enthusiasm for veganism and forming connections with them. “Every time I open that door, it’s just like synergy,” says Blenlly.

Born out of the persistence of a friend and grown with the unexpected support of family, Next Stop Vegan thrives as a successful vegan meal-prep service in the Bronx. Not only are these meals plant-based and cruelty-free, but they are filled with amazing flavors where you can “taste the love,” as photographer Evelyn Martinez described after sampling their famous Chimi Burger.

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Check out their website for more information on their meal prep service