Bernard Feelings is serving up one of the most finest delicacies and of the most requested in food. Good ol seafood. Read below to learn a little about Feelings and his flourishing business, Bernie’s Seafood & Catering.

How old are you and where are you from? I am 34 years old and originally from Aliceville, Al.

Where do you reside now and how long have you been there? After college, I started a family and moved to Northport and have been here for 12 years.

When did you become interested the culinary field? Any childhood cooking interest? After the purchase of our home I became interested in culinary while we hosted family and friends at gatherings and dinners. As a child, I had no desire to be in the kitchen unless it was time to eat. LOL

Did you have any culinary training like school or classes? Are you self taught? I learned from a lot of trial and error. Once I became interested in culinary I would research recipes or see them on social media.

When did you start to take things serious and start Bernie’s Seafood and Catering? What made you take it serious? I started taking Bernie’s serious in 2019. Before then, I always loved seafood and would patronize other businesses. One day my wife and I decided to try to do boils ourselves. Again, there were trials and errors. During a fraternity meeting, we discussed having a crawfish boil fundraiser. Since I had planned to purchase a crawfish boiler I volunteered to cook the crawfish once I got my recipe together. Once I got it together we pressed forward with the fundraiser and cooked over 350lbs of crawfish. After the positive and corrective feedback I went back and critiqued the recipe until one day there was my “Ah ha” moment. We had a “Seafood Night” at our home with some friends and they talked about how good the seafood was and that we should consider starting a business.

Are you fully self employed? If so, how was the transition? I am in the military full time, but I consider Bernie’s as my full time employment as well because I always try my best to meet the needs of our customers, answer any questions they may have in a timely manner, and find ways to better our brand.

What has been greatest reward since going into business? My greatest reward is customers that have stuck with us from the beginning. Even when we’ve not met their expectations, they offered critiques and allowed us to make corrections.

What has been the greatest challenge? One word… INFLATION! We’ve always tried to keep our prices on the lower side within the seafood market. Unfortunately with the prices steadily increasing, we’ve had to incorporate a few menu adjustments.

What has been the highlight of your culinary career? The highlight of my culinary career so far is actually getting Bernie’s off the ground as a legit business that our children can call their own and take to the next level when they become of age.

What’s something that you’d like you’re current and potential clients/customers to know? We would like our customers to know that with their unwavering support Bernie’s will continue to get bigger and better.