When you sit down to an exciting meal in a restaurant have you ever wondered where the produce actually comes from? Clearly, everything seems better than what you find on the shelves of your local supermarket. Who distributes everything from the small specialty item to the huge sacks of potatoes? For most of the restaurants in the Tri Counties area, the answer is “The Berry Man does!”.
This local Santa Barbara company is owned and operated by Santa Barbara resident Guy De Mangeon. The Berry Man started on a shoestring in 1989, when Guy began selling sweet, succulent local strawberries out of the back of his truck. Going from restaurant to restaurant, starting with a few, the number grew as Guy’s reputation spread. The inventory grew along with his reputation. More and more chefs asked Guy to carry more and more items.
Dreams can become reality. The Berry Man’s success is living proof. Today there is much, much more than just berries or even produce. We carry convenience items like a full line of dairy including milk, eggs, conventional, as well as specialty cheeses, state of the art creme fraiche, fresh squeezed fruit and vegetable juices, prepared deli salads, an amazing salsa fresca, fresh and frozen pastas, Asian seaweed salads, exotic mushrooms and truffles, olive oils, flowers, exotic produce, delectable desserts and more.
Guy De Mangeon, Owner / Founder
“Sometimes people don’t believe in the American Dream — the chance to work hard and become a success. I came from France with nothing,” Guy says, “and I was able to make this work. This is truly the American dream for me.”
A dream that has continued to grow as we build our business through customer service, and quality produce at a reasonable price. “Reaching perfection at what we do would be the end of my dream, but so far, we have to just keep at it — there’s always something more. I’m building this for my two kids and it really is a dream come true.”
More than 120 employees now make up the hard-working team at the two companies, a far cry from the days when Guy himself would load up the station wagon with berries and go knocking on the back doors of restaurants.
Naturally, there’s lots more than just berries on the truck now. From Malibu to Ventura and Ojai up to San Luis Obispo and as far north as San Simeon, the crew from The Berry Man companies, The Berry Man, Inc. and The Berry Man, Inc. San Luis Obispo All focus the same eye for quality and concern on each order that goes out the door and into your kitchens.