As my tagline says, “Everyone has a story.” I was not prepared for the one shared by Ron Tulotta when I asked him how he came to offer a mozzarella making class. Although, I cannot recount the minute details I learned, I may can scratch the surface of an enthralling journey from unavoidable twists of fate to an incredible providential present.
The Tulotta surname clues the Italian heritage, so, no surprise Ron is from Brooklyn, New York, and a large family including a twin brother. His family owns an Italian meat and cheese market, established in the 1940s by his grandfather, continued through his father and now his brothers, but sold in the early 2000”s. As a child, the father would teach the brothers how to bone out pork they would use to make fresh sausages or help them make foods like fresh mozzarella.
One of the twists of fate occurred when Ron was hit by a car at age 12, resulting in several surgeries and being homebound for over a year. During that time, providence kicked in and he became addicted to cooking through famous television shows like Julia Child, the Frugal Gourmet and others.
His love of cooking moved him from NYC and the family butcher shop to Scottsdale, Arizona, where ironically, he wound up in a butcher shop of 5-star restaurant, Fairmont Scottsdale Princess. His skills earned him acceptance into the local culinary school where he was recruited by Wolfgang Puck to help open the first and only Pan Asian fusion restaurant in America.
Puck helped Ron, now a successful chef in his own right, move back to NYC and into a head chef position at Windows on the World, located on the top of the World Trade Center, where he was working on the fateful September 11, 2001. Providential here, because Ron was on a Florida vacation that day and watched as 22 cooks who reported directly to him died within the collapsed buildings.
Tulotta making mozzarella
On the drive back to NYC from Florida, he made a stop at his sister’s house in Knoxville where again fate led him to fall in love with this area of the country and would lead to many more visits throughout the years.
Over the years Ron expanded his expertise through learning about food safety and science, becoming a certified professional in food safety and quality. All of his training led to his last move which was to Knoxville, the place he fell in love with in 2001.
He says, “Now that I have time to give my cooking passion, I have been holding pop-up events out of my home. I will make things like charcuterie boards, homemade sausages, fancy roasts, pizza from the wood-burning oven in our yard, fancy sandwiches and now mozzarella cheese.”
Mozzarella made by Tulotta
He has since started a corporation and called the business Butcher & Bear, a name that his middle daughter (he has four daughters) had thought of while driving through Cades Cove and encountering their first live bears.
Back to my original question to Ron, “How did you come to offer mozzarella making classes?”
He said, “I am going to start offering cheese-making classes along with other cooking classes as well as catering. My dream is to open an artisanal market carrying all freshly prepared and locally sourced foods while focusing on minimal food waste. A space with enough room for a few communal tables that would allow me to offer a “supper club” environment and hold cooking classes and small private events.”
Hearing his story, I have no doubt that we are in for a “new artisanal market opening soon” sign in the not-too-distant future, and I will certainly be a first-in-line customer.
All of us have a story and I want to tell yours! Send them to susan@knoxtntoday.com