We went to Sthlm Food & Wine with a cooler full of our frozen field-pea balls, a slightly terrified family crew and the feeling that this weekend was more of a dress rehearsal than anything else. The real Ät!Stockholm final is still ahead of us in Södertälje in a few weeks.
And somehow we already managed to win something on the way there.
Over the course of the fair we served some 1 500–1 600 balls. People stopped, tasted, asked a bunch of good questions, pulled friends over and in one case even asked about private label production (which, of course, we gladly do).
Then came the 30-second pitch competition on stage. Standing in front of a crowd with a timer ticking is not exactly our comfort zone, but the family team did their thing, told the Food by Hand story, and walked off with a lovely flower bouquet, a burst of applause and a lot of very loud, happy noises from the crowd. The good kind, not the “run away!” kind.
The best part was still the feedback at the stand. The most common comments were simple and very clear. Good flavour. No empty cardboard feeling. No strange soy aftertaste. A clean taste with a proper flavour profile and a long, pleasant finish. People liked the balls with both our (really delish) tomato sauce and the winter truffle sauce, which is exactly how we imagined them being used.
Not everyone loved the texture of course, and that is the feedback we expected – and take most seriously. Some people wanted a bit more bite, a firmer centre and a shape that makes it easier to get an even fry in a busy kitchen. So that is our next step. We will keep the sprouted base and the umami, then work on the texture a bit more. Maybe with some texturised fava bean protein, maybe slightly smaller in size, maybe a less perfectly round shape to encourage better browning. We will see where we get after a few more batches. One thing is sure: children must love them. They are our most important customers, and we have already planned some tasting sessions in schools.
So yes, we actually won something.
A bouquet, a pitch-trophy moment and a huge boost of confidence. More importantly, we came home with a very clear message from a lot of real eaters about what already works and what needs to be better.
Exactly the kind of win we need before stepping onto the final stage in Södertälje.
