Planning and adapting are two of the most important skills in Amy Meraz’s industry.
“You have to be good at pivoting and knowing that if something falls off the wagon, if something changes, there’s nothing you can do other than keep going with the changes,” she told the Sun.
Call for catering
For more information about booking Meraz Catering, visit merazcatering.com or call (805) 748-2527. Amy and Lupe Meraz are planning to cook free Thanksgiving dinners for pickup at St. Joseph High School in Santa Maria. Find @meraz.catering on Instagram or Meraz Catering & Events on Facebook.
Catering meals for hundreds of people is never easy, and it almost never goes fully according to plan. There might be hiccups with timing, the venue, or the menu.
“We have to plan ahead, because, like I tell my husband, you’re not going to go on a road trip and get somewhere new and then just get on the road and figure out the route on the way. You have to know where you’re going, so having that roadmap definitely helps to keep us on track,” Amy explained.
She’s been navigating metaphorical road trips with her husband, Lupe, since they debuted Meraz Catering in January 2024. They’re known for serving barbecue and Mexican cuisine for weddings, birthday parties, and corporate events on the Central Coast.
Amy will gladly absorb the stress of feeding a massive group if it means minimizing the load on the hosts. At weddings, a happy bride and groom is the best thing she could ask for.
“It’s that reward of being part of someone’s wedding and hearing how everything was smooth, how they didn’t have to worry about anything,” Amy said. “That’s pretty much our goal. It’s just to take that stress off of our clients.”
A lot of preparation precedes their success. Most of the couple’s events are scheduled over the weekends, leaving Thursdays and Fridays for grocery shopping. Amy will have already given the client their quote and done a walkthrough of the venue so her team knows where to set up.
Two hours before go time, the Meraz crew arrives to set up their tables. Amy and Lupe bring family members or friends to help serve. Extra hands ensure that the plates end up on tables as quickly as possible.
Amy and Lupe have attended weddings, for instance, when guests at table No. 1 have already finished their food by the time those at table No. 22 are just hopping in line. The chefs want to prevent that from happening at their catered events.
“We want everyone to have dinner at the same time, as close to the same time as possible,” Amy said. “Once we start getting in that 130, 140 [people range]—depending on what we’re serving—then we do two serving lines.”
Plates may be filled with barbecued tri-tip and chicken or Mexican favorites like tacos, chile verde, and chile colorado. For smaller parties, guests may choose from fruit plates or charcuterie.
Amy’s “heavy appetizers” are popular, too.
“I think it has a nice presentation. The customers are always happy with that,” Amy said.
Then, the guests sit down and enjoy their meal. For Lupe, that’s when he finally gets to relax a little.
“By the time everybody’s got food on their table, at that point, all the stress kind of falls off,” he said. “It just feels like you executed. You did a good job, and now it’s just a matter of making sure the customer’s content with the food and addressing any little things they may need during their meal, and that’s about it.”
Lupe enjoys being able to give back to the community that raised him. While Amy grew up partly in Mexico, Lupe was born and raised in Santa Maria. Meraz Catering recently started cooking Sunday dinners for the football team at Cal Poly, where Lupe studied.
The pair married 26 years ago, bought a house, and raised a family. They didn’t dream of working in the food industry together, but it eventually made sense for them to dive headfirst into Meraz Catering. He and Amy both worked in banking for years and realized it no longer fulfilled them.
Lupe said his wife always had the special touch when it comes to creating delicious meals. Amy’s sauces set their food apart.
“She’s always been good at it. I can’t complain. She’s cooked since we’ve been married, and we eat pretty well,” Lupe said, making his wife laugh.
While Amy might be the boss in the kitchen, Lupe loves to man the barbecue. He’s proud that the meat turns out moist and flavorful, well-seasoned.
“I don’t like to brag about my food,” Lupe said. “Barbecuing is one of those things that everybody has their own style, and everybody’s style is good.”
Another key element is consistency. They handle every ingredient and cook their food the same way every time.
Their commercial kitchen is located at St. Joseph High School in Santa Maria. The Merazes were hired to make the students’ meals every day, and it turned out to be a great match.
Some of the high schoolers work for Meraz Catering as servers, but all who line up for hot lunch at St. Joseph are taste-testers for new recipes, whether they realize it or not.
“This will be our third school year. We’re still here, and kids love our food. Teachers love our food,” Lupe said. “It’s been great. We’ve been blessed.”
Students also find him out on the sports fields. Lupe has coached football at the high school for 12 years and softball for five. He said being a mentor to the athletes has been a “great experience” for him.
The chef’s career shift to the food industry fulfills him much more than the commercial lending work he did at the bank.
“I like helping people and doing things for people, and I think this allows me to fulfill that area which was kind of missing for me,” Lupe said. “The catering thing is just a little more rewarding for us..”
Reach Staff Writer Madison White at mwhite@santamariasun.com.
This article appears in September 17 – September 24, 2026.
