Food is social! If this is something that you’re not sure you agree with, take a look at food_kaat on Instagram and all will be clear. Katherine Sun’s food blog has it all: gorgeous photos and recipes, recommendations, giveaways, and more. Even so, if you asked me what the best thing about it is, my answer would undoubtedly be the warmth that each post radiates. The captions are wonderfully detailed, passionate, and encourage people to chat in the comments. Sun sometimes does this by writing a catchy opening for the recipe or asking about people’s plans for the day during the lovely spring weather. Either way, it adds some flare to her posts in a natural and pleasant way. It’s just as much about the food itself as it is about human connection–a universal activity that gives us the chance to bond.
Katherine Sun already has quite a bit of experience with food but she’s only getting started. She just finished her third year as a Food Science student at the University of Guelph and is currently doing Co-op work in product development and sensory evaluation relating to food. Her virtual interview with the White Wall Review has the same cheerful and welcoming demeanour that Katherine’s posts have. She animatedly chatted about her feelings on food, cooking, family, and the challenges that come with creating a food blog during the COVID-19 pandemic. Accomplishing the feat of keeping her account a happy and safe place for connecting people and food is no easy task, but it is an important one, especially during the time where people are feeling apathetic and lonely. Impressively, Katherine’s done it with style.
White Wall Review: What was it that drew you to starting a food blog?
Katherine Sun: Well, I have always had a great interest in food. In fact, that’s what initially drew me to my major: food science! And when everything started getting shut down due to COVID-19, a lot of other extracurricular food-related projects I was working on got shut down as well. So, I was looking for new ways that I could share my love and passion for food with people. I guess that’s how this got started.
WWR: Your captions are passionate and conversational. What would you say inspired your approach to going beyond simply providing recipes and photos?
KS: Well, it was just a way for me to further connect with my followers and also it gave me a chance to ask how people were doing. It’s always nice having someone check up on you, even if you don’t know them personally. But beyond that, I think I just really enjoy talking about food and I guess talking in general [laughs].
WWR: How would you say that the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted or changed your food blog?
KS: To be honest, I don’t feel like it’s had that much of an impact on my content since I started it so close to when things were getting shut down. Although, my original intentions for this account were to make it a food and travel blog, but obviously it’s kind of hard to do that these days. But, hopefully someday in the future. Can you add a little airplane emoji to that?
WWR: How have the COVID restrictions relating to restaurants/eating out changed your eating and cooking habits?
KS: Well, I actually haven’t been in a physical restaurant for months. If I do have food from a restaurant, it’ll be take-out. And, in terms of cooking, I think I’ve definitely been cooking a lot more. Also, a lot of restaurants have been offering their own meal kits, so those have been fun to try out.
WWR: In your opinion, what are the ways that food brings people together?
KS: Food brings people together because you know, food is universal. Everyone eats food and especially seeing the similarities between different cuisines, you can really see how food is something that can tie everyone together. And people from all different backgrounds can just sit down together and enjoy a good meal together. Sidenote: food is good for the soul.
WWR: Would you say it is challenging to determine new ways of sharing food and the experience that comes with it given these current limitations?
KS: I really enjoy preparing food/baked goods for other people, especially my grandparents since they don’t always eat too much of a variety of things. Also, I think they just really enjoy it when I make them food. Now, it’s a lot harder to get it to them. Especially since they’re part of a group more at risk for COVID, so I have to be extra careful.
WWR: Do you feel as though you’ve become a more confident or creative cook and recipe explorer by going out to eat less?
KS: Yeah, I think so. I’ll say, especially since starting my food account, I’ve had more incentive to try out a wider range of recipes coming from a content creator’s perspective. And I think that by trying out different things, I’ve also expanded my cooking abilities and as a result, my confidence in the kitchen.
WWR: Would you say that the style of the visual aspect of your blog has changed with time?
KS: I definitely try to keep it consistent in terms of colours and quality, but definitely my earlier posts for some reason are a lot more orange overall. In terms of quality, some of my very earliest photos aren’t the greatest in all honesty, especially my very first one but I like to keep them there to show my progress as an aspiring food photographer for both myself and my audience. For the general theme though, I like my page to be bright, so it includes many bright colours.
WWR: How have your close friends and family had an impact on food_kaat?
KS: Well, my friends and family have all been really supportive and encouraging of my food blog and I really appreciate that. Especially because sometimes I’ll lose motivation to post, but then friends and family just–through their encouraging words–have really carried me through moments of…I guess whatever the food equivalent of writer’s block is. I also have family members sending me ideas of food to try for posts. Sometimes it’s a restaurant that they wanted to try eating at or it’s a recipe for something that they had just been wanting to eat. Actually, my mom recently bought me these cute little cakes from a fancy bakery to celebrate my completion of third year and also kept telling me to take pictures so I could post about them on my food blog. It made me really happy seeing her get really excited over something that I’m also really excited about. So yeah, friends and family for sure have a huge influence on food_kaat.
WWR: Do you plan to explore new food establishments when life returns to normal?
KS: For sure! There are a bunch of places in downtown Toronto that actually opened up since the pandemic started. I really wanted to give them a try but I don’t live in Toronto and the places are too far away for me to order for delivery, so I haven’t gotten the chance yet, but they’re definitely on my list. Hopefully when travel opens up again, I’ll get to do some food tourism. I particularly would love to go to Japan and just eat everything, I watch too many Japanese food blogs [laughs]. I think it’d be really cool to do a tour of Japan and try the different specialties of each prefecture. Also, I recently started Co-op and it’s located in Mississauga, so I’m sure there are a bunch of food places that I could try around there–follow food_kaat for updates [laughs].
WWR: How do you think you’ll change the way you post post-pandemic? Will you apply what you learned this year?
KS: I guess I will be taking more photos in actual restaurants since all of mine are basically taken from home. I also would really like to showcase more small or local businesses. Some of them don’t offer delivery, so the only way to get their product is to go to their physical location, and it’s a bit tricky to do that in COVID times. I just really love showing support for these people and the work that they do.
WWR: What advice would you give to someone wanting to start a similar blog now?
KS: Just go for it. If you have interest in starting a food account, you probably already have a lot of food photos saved to your phone or whatever you take photos on. So, you already have something to start with and there’s no excuse to not just go for it. Have fun with it, it’s your food account, don’t put too much pressure on yourself or your account. Although, I will say, if you are interested in account growth, posting regularly is important but you do you, boo. Just start and see where it takes you.
We both came out of this interview just a little happier and upon reflection, it really is the little things that keep us, as people, feeling joyful. Katherine Sun’s food blog expresses this simple fact and further demonstrates how something that everyone can connect to, like food, can brighten these dark and uncertain times. If you happen to be asking yourself whether you want to start something similar, as Katherine said, just go for it! Sharing something with the world, inspiring others, and even brightening the day of one person is what life is all about.
To visit Katherine’s food account and experience it for yourself, be sure to check out @food_kaat on Instagram!