There is nothing more important in life than food. Oh, I know what you’re saying. Love is more important. But you can’t love, or create beauty or do good in the world if you haven’t eaten. And that’s where Stephen and Nicolas Servis come in.
They are the owners and operators of Servis Events, featuring meals comprised of locally sourced ingredients and situated “at the intersection of health-focused meals and luxury dining.”
Bucks County natives, these identical twins grew up in Warrington, attending First Fridays in Doylestown Borough, where they both now live.
They enrolled in the Culinary Arts program at Middle Bucks Institute of Technology and went to Bucks County Community College for their associate degrees in Hotel and Restaurant Management.
Everything else they learned was through experience in the kitchen. And the farm. And the forest.
The brothers’ skills are impressive and far-ranging: full animal butchery, gardening, growing under lights, tapping maple trees, raising bees, making their own sauces, and foraging for garnish are just a few.
While volunteering at a sustainable farm, a farm that practices growing food while conserving the planet’s finite resources, Stephen found out about WWOOF (World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms) and was excited about the prospect of free travel if you offered your work to the farmer in exchange for housing and meals. This resulted in their staying for two months at Flying Pond Farm in Maine. The experience had a profound impact on them.
“After countless conversations with the farmer and his family (Harold and the Grams), we had somewhat of a plan for when we returned home to start cooking for these private events. After a little bit of revising, we had our vision.”
Their goal was “to bring family and friends together through eating good food,” and there’s no getting around the fact that food is often the essential ingredient in get-togethers. If you doubt it, imagine a Thanksgiving where everyone brings their own hoagie.
“We grew up eating as a family, and while in Maine, we got to experience how the dinner table really brought the family, and the staying WWOOFers all together.”
“We got to see with different eyes while living in Maine,” they tell me. There, ‘farm to table’ wasn’t a niche. It was a way of life.
To Servis Events, “Connection and relationship building is just as important as the high quality of food and service we provide.”
It becomes clear these brothers are more on a mission than just making a living. “If eating from the land around you, knowing all of the passionate people who are producing the food, and picking it up yourself doesn’t give a sense of community, then we don’t know what will.”
The apples didn’t fall far from the tree when it comes to providing hospitality. The twins’ parents, Amy and Steve, along with brother, Alex, a conservation biologist, operate Rocking Horse Acres, an Air BNB in Pipersville that provides five-star accommodations for overnight stays, corporate retreats, special events, etc. with optional seven-course fine dining experiences.
When asked what they do when they’re not cooking, it still all seems to circle back to food and honoring the Earth. “Foraging and learning about the natural world is number one.”
“We try to spend as much time as we can observing nature, how she changes with each passing season, how she interacts with us, the gifts she provides to us, learning how to identify plants, shrubs, and trees to incorporate into our cooking to give our business an even deeper sense of our roots in Bucks County.”
Talking to them, I think of the times I had a special occasion to celebrate but was so overwhelmed at the prospect of planning, shopping, cooking, table setting, serving, and worst of all cleaning up that I decided to just lie down with a cool washcloth on my face until the impulse to entertain passed.
But these two guys make it sound possible for you to actually enjoy your own party. “We provide all necessary equipment: plate ware, silverware, cookware, napkins, printed menus, flower bouquet, water and glasses, and all food products. WE TAKE HOME ALL DIRTY DISHES, COOKWARE, AND UTENSILS, (capitalization theirs) leaving you with a clean kitchen.”
Doesn’t get any more full service than that.
Are you making a living doing something unique? Has your career taken a sharp turn in the direction of your dreams? Tell us about it in an email to herald@buckscountyherald.com. Put “It’s a Living with Lisa” in the subject line.
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