Meet Anthony Teav | Mama Teav’s Co-Founder

We had the good fortune of connecting with Anthony Teav and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Anthony, can you tell us more about your background and the role it’s played in shaping who you are today?
Some of my earliest childhood memories revolve around my grandparents, who, like my parents, were immigrants fleeing genocide and war in Cambodia. I spent a lot of time watching my grandmother prepare lunch and dinner for our large family. We ate meals on mats and sheets spread out on the kitchen linoleum floor. She was an incredible cook, passionate and expressive through her food and occasional tongue lashings. Her influence extended to the most important woman in my sister’s and my lives: our Mama Teav. Carrying on the legacy of her fiery mother, Mama Teav fostered our love for food and helped us understand our identity through Khmer meals while also allowing us to embrace American culture.

Christina, who was clearly influenced by both women, ventured into the culinary world with a work ethic instilled by our hard working immigrant parents. Before redeveloping Mama’s Hot Garlic recipe, she blazed her own trail, contributing to renowned restaurants such as The French Laundry, Morimoto, State Bird Provisions, and The Progress. She took our mother and grandmother’s passion and transformed it into a fulfilling career.

As I’ve grown older, I’ve come to realize that my family and the Cambodian community are relatively new to America compared to other ethnic groups with longer histories here. My parents’ sacrifices and their connection to their Khmer roots have inspired me and Christina to create something meaningful and contribute to the food space with a product that represents far more than just a condiment. This is an imprint of our family’s journey in America.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
My sister and I recreated our mom’s garlic chili oil recipe during the pandemic. It kept us busy and gave us a purpose during uncertain times. What started as a passion project turned into a business after we released a small batch to friends and family and received a lot of positive feedback. We had no idea what we were doing, but it was fun and allowed me to use my creative side to build out a full brand for our new product, Mama Teav’s Hot Garlic. Once I created an Instagram page for it, word of mouth spread, and businesses started reaching out to see if we did wholesale. We didn’t even have a website up yet! From then on, we decided to be intentional and began learning about the CPG (consumer packaged goods) business while scaling up our production.

We got a big break when Vice Munchies featured us in a segment called “Word of Mouth,” highlighting small businesses you might not have heard of. That exposure launched our business three years ago, and that summer was fucking bananas. We went from averaging 10-20 orders per week to hundreds per day! It forced Christina and me to adjust on the fly and figure out how to produce at a larger capacity while still fulfilling orders in a reasonable time. We got through it, and the valuable lesson was that when we faced adversity, we leaned on each other to solve each problem one at a time. We embraced the discomfort. Sure, we were exhausted some days, but it felt great tackling those challenges.

There have been many challenges, like scaling, resources, and knowing only what we knew at the time. But if you have a good team and are intentional about your business and personal goals, things seem to fall into place. We’re not concerned with the fastest growth. We just want to do things right and naturally evolve into something greater than what we were yesterday.

We’re a family-owned food company that cares about what goes into our products. We intentionally seek quality and natural ingredients so you feel good using our products because everyone deserves a good meal.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
If my friends were visiting the Bay area I’d tell them to go to these places:

* Golden Gate Park and get lost through all the walking trails. There are so many dope areas and the park just makes you feel alive.

*The Progress in the Fillmore. Great cocktails and delicious food with a vibe.

*Kiraku restaurant in Berkeley. My favorite restaurant, hands down! Best Izakaya in the area.

*Redwood Regional Park in Oakland for hiking.

*The Ferry Building on Saturday mornings for the Farmer’s Market.

*If you like to excercise, jog along Crissy Fields towards the Golden Gate bridge.

*Lovely’s in Oakland for burgers.

*Towards sunset, walk around Chinatown and North Beach without a destination and find random small shops or bars to hit up. My favorite thing to do on a Sunday.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I can’t stress enough how lucky I am to work with my sister, who has helped turn this passion project into a growing business. Her fearlessness has pushed us into uncharted territory necessary for our growth. Many people who have crossed my path, whether intentionally or unintentionally, have inspired me to grow with curiosity. Our grandparents, who encouraged us to believe in our dreams, are my earliest inspirations. My family deserves the biggest thanks for their help and support, which have made this project both enjoyable and meaningful.
Lastly, a shout-out to Nite and Nyum Bai for allowing me to introduce Mama’s recipe to the public.

Website: https://mamateavs.com

Instagram: @mamateavs

Facebook: @mamateavs

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qm7WQy5-diA

Image Credits
Garnish Studios, Andy An