Jeanne and Marc Giguere in their new Delicious Day Luncheonette

Delicious Day opens in Brentwood Court
By KERRI BARTLETT
For Brentwood Home Page
The official opening of Delicious Day Luncheonette came Tuesday, a few weeks after co-owner and caterer Jeanne Giguere had planned. That's the nature of small business. But now that the door's unlocked, she's ready to make the diner a household name and favorite destination.

The small restaurant, tucked into the corner of the small shopping center at 7020 S. Church St., had a soft opening before Christmas. The plan was to reopen right after the first year, but Jeanne's mom had a medical emergency out of state and she didn't want Delicious Day to open without her. Thank goodness everything's back on track in New Jersey and Brentwood. Those who stopped by to sample the homemade lasagna in December have been anxiously awaiting the opportunity to try it again.

Delicious Day specialties include chicken salad, chicken noodle soup and an array of different pastas made-from-scratch daily.

Although Jeanne, a Nashville resident of 17 years, is new to the Brentwood restaurant scene, she is not new to the food business. She opened her first culinary venture, Vanishing Gourmet Catering (now Delicious Day Catering), under the umbrella of Delicious Day Inc. 10 years ago. She has been serving a variety of gourmet options at large and small parties, corporate events, weddings and other festive occasions ever since. Jeanne runs the restaurant and catering business with her husband and co-owner Marc.

Before opening the catering business, Jeanne worked in the music business in public relations and was a session singer for almost 20 years. However, in her early 40s the food business bug bit her, and she decided to make a career transition.

Five years ago, Marc – a veteran of the U.S. Air Force and former head of programming at Z Music Television once located in Brentwood -- transitioned from the music business to the catering business to work side by side with his wife.

Jeanne cultivated her culinary talents by beginning small, purely out of enjoyment and a love of cooking. She prepared dishes for neighborhood parties where her food was quickly noticed, and catering requests began pouring in from friends and neighbors. Soon she decided to give in to what she loved and start a catering business.

“From the first time I catered for clients, I knew that this is what I wanted to do with my life because I love cooking. I love people. It suits me and just made sense,” she said. “I believe that when you love what you do and do it well, opportunity finds you. You just have to believe in yourself, jump in and do it.”

Her motto, “casual, fresh, delicious,” has served her well as glowing praises about her fresh, homemade food have followed her for a decade. No canned foods or frozen meats are to be found in the Delicious Day kitchen. Each dish is made-from-scratch daily and inspired by the meals prepared by Jeanne’s Italian-American family.

The training ground for a future career in the food business began in her family’s kitchen in New Jersey where as a child, she observed her mother cooking “constantly.” Brimming with seven brothers and sisters, Jeanne’s childhood home was filled with activity, plenty of good food and laughter.

“All of us sat down to dinner every single night around the table full of family and friends. I learned the principles of hospitality and cooking quality food. My mother prepared dishes for large groups of people effortlessly, so I feel that the food business comes as second nature to me,” Jeanne said.

Although Jeanne’s background is comprised of Italian influences, she keeps the creativity alive in her cooking by experimenting with new recipes, consisting of Mexican, Cajun, and Asian influences among others.  “I feel that I have a gifted palate in creating recipes, and I like to challenge myself as a chef and as a person,” she said.

She has built her success as a business on the philosophy, “Just say yes first, and figure it out later.”

Jeanne’s client list includes Vanderbilt Hospital, Frist Center, Metro Nashville Public Schools, US Army and Macy’s. Delicious Day has two other locations in addition to its new home in Brentwood. One is on Music Row, 1600 Division St. The other, which is closed to the general public, is inside the United Methodist Publishing House Cafeteria/Corporate Headquarters, 201 8th Ave. S. Keeping with the family theme, the UMPH employee restaurant is managed and run by Jeanne’s daughter Katie and her husband Scot.

Jeanne and Marc’s son Marc is in college in New York City.

Delicious Day Luncheonette Brentwood is open from 11 a.m. - 2 p.m. weekdays. The restaurant is also available in the a.m. or p.m. and weekends for private parties or business meetings.

A couple of customer favorites inspired by Jeanne’s mother’s kitchen are the hand-rolled meatballs and rosemary chicken.

For more information, visit deliciousdayinc.com or call 615-376-6066.