Catering With Care
Jeremy and Karla Putts Cater To Culture, Community, and Heart
Veteran Jeremy Putts and his wife Karla didn’t imagine they’d retire to Arkansas, and turn a side-project into a full-time catering business…while living out of an RV.
The couple behind Carmelita Catering met in California towards the end of Jeremy’s 20-year career with the Marine Corps. A native of Eureka Springs, Jeremy and his Mexicali-born wife felt led to leave everything behind in Southern California to start a fresh chapter in Northwest Arkansas.
“We had a BBQ food truck in San Diego called Devil Dogs BBQ,” Jeremy said. “We sold the business and left everything but our RV, our dogs, and some clothes to move to Arkansas. I had some land in Eureka and we were going to build, but it wasn’t the right fit, so we went a different direction.”
“We weren’t supposed to be working,” Karla added. “We were supposed to be retired, but being the Marine that he is, he just jumps right in and figures it out. We were living in an RV in Cave Springs, and one day he came home and said, ‘I got a 300-person catering gig.’”
The couple operates their Carmelita Catering business like a true partnership – Jeremy manages menus and develops new recipes, and Karla handles client-facing hospitality, translating ideas into creative experiences.
“The first wedding we did, the couple wanted tacos, and their grandparents wanted familiar food,” she shared. “We made a BBQ bar and taco bar, and whatever people felt during that event blew up. Guests shared their experience, and we contracted four more weddings.”
It’s this merging of cultures that comes naturally to the couple, but has a profound impact on clients with families like their own. Instead of picking sides, Carmelita Catering finds creative ways to blend backgrounds so everyone feels included.
“I want to know what makes the meal connect with you, your family, and your guests,” Karla explained. “We have clients who met in California; he is from Korea and she is Chinese, and we made a menu that blends their backgrounds and their love of Mexican food from California.”
“Another couple shared how they both enjoyed making pasta in their kitchen while they were dating. We played to that element of their love story, and the guests who were closest to them could recognize that.”
Translating love stories and heritage into an edible experience is only half of the Carmelita Catering process. Once a menu is created, the couple looks to their community to source their ingredients. Much of Carmelita’s produce comes from Prairie Woods Farm – a small, USDA Certified Organic, family-owned farm in Sulphur Springs. For specialty items like tortillas, Carmelita Catering purchases from Bentonville-based Mama Z’s.
“It’s the experience and quality that distinguishes our catering service from others,” Jeremy said. “You can taste the difference in our food because we make everything fresh and source local as much as possible. We try to keep everything within the community to support our neighbors.”
For intimate events, the Carmelita Catering experience can include live cooking demos or unique activations like torching crème brûlée or prepping a traditional Hawaiian Kālua pig.
“For private events of 50 people or less, I’ll typically cook on site and use your kitchen; basically putting on a show,” Jeremy said. “It’s interactive and fun to see your food prepared in front of you.”
Karla shared about another client who wanted to recreate the ambiance of going to a Mexican taco shop. “We were able to grill on site, hung twinkle lights, and set up tables where we made the tortillas and served the tacos outside.”
For Jeremy and Karla, Carmelita Catering is a platform to serve more than just food. To them, the Northwest Arkansas catering market was missing a key ingredient: a company that cared about putting food on the table and what it represents: culture, community, and heart.
“For us, this is a pleasure, and you’re giving us an opportunity to serve you,” Karla said. “We try to attract people who put their hearts into everything they do. Every day, the main purpose of our catering is to bring the love of God to others.”
To book Carmelita Catering Co. for your next event, visit www.carmelitacateringco.com and browse their portfolio of upscale events on social media @CarmelitaCateringCo.
For us, this is a pleasure – you’re giving us the opportunity to serve you. We do that because we love God and we want to share that with others.