company history

Chef Mike started cooking and baking from scratch at a young age alongside his mother, who has passed down so many of our family recipes and traditions.  Over the years, he also developed a passion for creating magnificent dishes by entertaining family and friends.

As a culinary school graduate, Chef Mike has always dreamed of having his own restaurant.  With so many people now working long hours and involved in extra-curricular activities with their families, he wants to be able to bring back that homemade feel of meals using fresh, locally sourced ingredients.

In 2013, Chef Mike decided to establish his own business called stuffed., with a focus on handmade perogies.  Through annual appearances at the St. George AppleFest, he quickly discovered that his perogies had become a craving for many customers along the way and began selling frozen products at local farmers’ markets and other special events.

During the Summer of 2019, stuffed. introduced a brand new Mobile Kitchen which allows us to participate in festivals throughout the Greater Hamilton Area, and offer catering for private or corporate parties.  A variety of dishes are offered from the Food Trailer including our Classic Cheddar Cheese Perogies, Perogy Poutine, The Snakebite, Fully Loaded Perogies, City Chicken, Dill Pickle Soup, Fried Cheese Curds, Deep Fried Pickles and the new Perogy Taco!  

In 2019, stuffed. also received several Reader’s Choice Awards through the Hamilton Spectator and Flamborough Review, including the Platinum Winner for Best Food Truck and Best Fast Food, Diamond Winner for Best Catering Company and Gold Winner for Best New Restaurant, Specialty Food Store, Family, Lunch, Overall Service, Take-Out, and Vegetarian.  Additionally, a trophy was presented for Most Awesome Staff at Toronto’s Foodalicious Festival.

In January 2020, we helped to create a new Winter Farmers’ Market at Connon Nurseries in Waterdown, which gives other Local Food Vendors the opportunity to sell their goods to the community.  We also started the year with a bang, winning 1st Runner Up for the Best Soup at the Soupfest fundraiser for the Living Rock Youth Resource Centre in Hamilton.  Our Dill Pickle Soup entry created a lot of buzz as we served over 1,200 bowls to the guests in attendance. 

In March 2020, COVID-19 had a devastating effect on the Foodservice Industry, forcing many owners to permanently close their doors.  All of our scheduled local festivals and events were continuously being cancelled throughout the year.  By May, we had launched an online eCommerce site to offer pick-up and home delivery in Waterdown and Burlington.  Then in the late summer, two new farmers’ markets were hosted at the Rockton Fairgrounds and Connon Nurseries.  The local Community has offered so much support during this difficult time and we are grateful that you continue to place orders on a weekly basis.

This year we received a total of 26 Reader’s Choice Awards through the Hamilton Spectator, Toronto Star and the Flamborough Review including Diamond Winner for Best Food Truck, Platinum Winner for Best Catering Company and Gold Winner for Best Customer Service and Best Poutine (our Perogy Poutine is very popular).

2021 has certainly been another exciting year!  Stuffed. was awarded Best Soup and Most Creative Soup at #Soupfest2021 with Chef Mike’s new Bacon Mushroom recipe.  We have won 65 Reader’s Choice Awards from the Burlington Post, Hamilton Community News, Flamborough Review and Hamilton Spectator (32 Diamond, 18 Platinum and 15 Gold), including #1 for Best Local Chef – Michael Schmidt and proudly retaining our title as the #1 Best Food Truck in Hamilton; plus another 39 awards through CommunityVotes in Burlington, Hamilton, Flamborough and Oakville for Best German, European, International, Food Trucks, Fast Food, Caterers, Gourmet Food Shop, Take Out and Vegetarian (just to name a few).

Throughout 2022, we participated in the Winter Farmers’ Market at Connon Nurseries, served the Most Bowls of Soup at #SoupFest2022 with Chef Mike’s new Chicken Pot Pie Soup, hosted numerous Pop-Up Dinners at the Dundas Legion, attended the Waterdown Summer Farmers’ Market and won 71 Reader’s Choice Awards within the Greater Hamilton Area (retaining our titles for Best Food Truck and Best Local Chef).  In May, we were happy to get back on the road again in our Food Trailer, starting with Sew Hungry on Ottawa Street North, the Sound of Music Festival at Spencer Smith Park, our hometown’s OH Canada Rotary Ribfest for Canada Day in Waterdown, then Supercrawl and the Ancaster Fair!  Most recently, we’ve partnered with the Valens Community Centre to host Monthly Dinners throughout the Fall, Winter and Spring.  It’s a fun-filled Perogy Adventure, so grab your fork and get ready to #EatLocal.

TeamPerogy has started 2023 on a high note, being voted as #1 Best Soup by the Public during the 21st Annual SoupFest fundraiser for the Living Rock Youth Centre in Hamilton, and 1st Runner Up for Best Soup from the Tasting Panel with our new Creamy Spinach Artichoke Soup.  Additional Reader’s Choice Awards have also been received for Best Food Truck, Best Family Business, Best Local Chef, Best European Cuisine and many more!  We look forward to seeing you every Saturday during the Waterdown Farmers’ Market from May 27th to October 14th, or at local festivals and events in the near future!  Watch our Upcoming Events page for updates on where else to find the stuffed. Food Trailer this season.

Follow us on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter @TeamPerogy to receive notifications about our featured events, or e-mail us to inquire about more information and catering opportunities!