After opening The Wheel Kitchen in Tomball in 2016, chef Thelma Portillo has expanded her farm-to-table concept to Conroe.Â
In July, she and husband, Dennis, opened The Wheel Cafe at 1905 Longmire Road on Conroe’s northwest side in an area plentiful with homes but sparse on dining opportunities.
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Soon they will open The Wheel Pizzeria in the same center also with a focus on farm-fresh ingredients.Â
The Wheel Cafe features a variety of coffees from beans roasted in Spring, teas and juices and breakfast plates and bowls, baked goods and a lunch menu of sandwiches, soups and salads — all created through her network of local farmers and small producers.Â
Portillo grew up in Guatemala.Â
“It’s a beautiful little country that is family oriented with the family always around the table,” she said. The name “The Wheel” is a nod to families gathering around the table like they would in her home country and the circle of bringing fresh items to the table.Â
She was the youngest of three sisters growing up.
Her mother was a teacher but she also loved to cook. Her mother would go to cooking classes and Portillo would tag along as a girl. That passion for cooking continued into Portillo’s teen years. She was also influenced by her father’s job as CEO for a chocolate factory in Guatemala.
“It was something for us to do together,” she said of cooking with her mother. The muffins on The Wheel Cafe menu are made from her mother’s recipe.
Her family moved to California when she was 18.Â
She studied the culinary arts in California working in one of the finest Italian restaurants in Beverly Hills, she said. When she started, she was doing basic things like cutting lettuce, but she was able to advance within the restaurant and her passion for Italian food flourished.Â
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Her culinary studies brought her to Europe and when she returned to the US, she went on to own restaurants in Vermont and California.Â
Her husband was transferred to Texas for his job. When she arrived in the Houston area, she opened the Italian restaurant Sorrento in Kingwood.Â
She experienced a difficult pregnancy with her second son and had to step away from the restaurant.Â
“I couldn’t continue working 14 hours a day as a chef. I needed to be with the baby,” she said.
It was then that she began selling soups and salads at local farmer’s markets.Â
“That’s when I found the beauty of the farmer’s markets,” she said. “I found a very good community of small producers and farmers and I wanted a way to showcase this community.”Â
The Wheel Kitchen, which operates out of a former house at 25510 Zion Lutheran Cemetery Road in Tomball, was a way to put her fresh dishes on display.Â
She found many of her Tomball customers were coming from Conroe and felt like the Conroe location was a natural expansion of her concept.Â
“I think it’s important for people to understand the value of the fresh food, the value of the ingredients for your body and being able to see the flavors as they are,” she said.Â
Debbie Simecek and Jeanie Jackson live in the nearby neighborhoods of Panorama Village and Watercrest. For Simecek, the location is on the way to and from her church West Conroe Baptist Church.Â
They find the location to be a pleasant and quiet place to meet as they begin planning for the church’s upcoming “Bethlehem City” presentation during the Christmas season.Â
They’re enjoying working their way through the menu and their favorites are the muffins and Pumpkin Spice Latte.Â
The farm-to-table concept also supports small-business owners.Â
“When you buy a dish from me, you’re not just buying from me, you’re also buying from so many people behind me,” she said of the network of farmers.Â
Portillo’s background is in Italian food and she looks forward to sharing her pizzas with the community soon. She said The Wheel Pizzeria will be Italian with her own twist.Â
The pizzeria is scheduled to be open later this month or early next month and is currently in the permitting process.Â
Visit The Wheel Cafe website for more.Â