Rising Stars: Meet Molly Martin

Today we’d like to introduce you to Molly Martin.

Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
Born and raised in coastal Mississippi, Molly Martin discovered her love of food when she was gifted a cookbook on her 13th birthday, and promptly prepared a four-course meal for her family. Martin moved to Tennessee to attend college at Sewanee and began working in hospitality at the university coffee shop. She then migrated to Nashville after graduation to pursue music, and her creative energy and love of people drew her back into
hospitality. She worked in front of the house for four years before moving back of the house, and she’s been in the kitchen
ever since.

As a culinarian in Nashville, Martin has worked with some of the most well-regarded chefs in the industry – Tandy Wilson, Vivek Surti, Lisa Donovan, and Laura Wilson. Martin also spent one month in London staging and learning from famed chef and cookbook author Yotam Ottolenghi. Her experience further includes operations management with Nashville-based restaurant group Strategic Hospitality, as well as launching the opening culinary programs at Salt + Vine and Bar Luca

Martin started Juniper Green in 2017 after she realized how much she enjoyed being a part of the big moments in people’s lives. As Nashville’s dining scene and palate grew more diverse, she believed her style of cooking and presentation would add something unique and contemporary to the landscape. Juniper Green draws inspiration from local ingredients and global flavors to create dynamic, high-quality food to accompany all of life’s
important moments, whether it’s a wedding, a birthday celebration, or a regular Tuesday night around the
dinner table with family.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Not at all. But that’s why we do what we do. I enjoy being an entrepreneur but it comes with serious hills and valleys. Some being, having twins within a year of starting my business with my business partner who also had just had a baby herself. For the first two years of Juniper Green, we worked out of a kitchen with a one-speed rack and one dry storage shelf to work with. And we all know what covid did to hospitality. These challenges have all taught me different lessons with the opportunity to continue to improve and adapt how my business operates!

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
Juniper Green caters to a wide range of events, from corporate cocktail mixers & casual social gatherings to creative weddings that tell our clients’ stories. We create flavors with local and fresh ingredients that are good for the soul! We have cultivated a community of clientele that inspires us to make magic and weave dreams whenever we can! We strive to go above and beyond for our clients. Tables are meant for memories and we love to curate the best of them.

We are most proud of the changes we are seeing in hospitality standards, how women are stepping into more leadership and management roles, and being a part of my team’s growth as a team and as individuals.

Contact Info:

• Email: [email protected]
• Website: junipergreen.kitchen
• Instagram: junipergreenkitchen
• Facebook: junipergreenculinaryevents

Image Credits
Molly Peach

Smalling

Justin Rearden