Food Truck & Catering

Native Northern California sisters, Jamie & Lisa Freeman, were born and raised in Linden, a small farming community in the San Joaquin Valley. Their grandfather, George Di Carlo, emigrated from Sicily to California where he began farming and eventually went into the restaurant business. Orval Freeman, their paternal grandfather, raised livestock. It was only natural that the sisters gained an appreciation for seasonally harvested produce, freshly made cream, homemade butter, and free-range eggs.

Jamie has extensive restaurant and catering experience. She was selected as a finalist for "The Best Bartender of San Joaquin County" by the Stockton Record in 2005.

Jamie had “front of the house” position with the famous Waterloo California Restaurant at the age of 15. Growing up there, she learned all aspects of the business including cooking and bartending. She also worked in the culinary department for the world renowned winery, Wente Vineyards in Livermore, California. Today, Jamie is bar manager for The Waterloo Club.

Lisa specializes in outdoor cooking. She worked at the El Rancho Steak House and Waterloo Restaurant while studying culinary arts at Columbia College where she graduated in 1994. She has received certificates from CIA Greystone, Napa and UC Davis.

In addition, Lisa has worked on television cooking shows, including a position on the culinary support team for Michael Chiarello's Napastyle and has been a spokesperson for several national media tours. Lisa has also been with NASCAR as executive chef since 2002 and is still touring the country with the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series.

Lisa recently co-authored her first cookbook, The Hunter’s Table, for Ducks Unlimited, which was released in August by FRP Books.

All of this was perfect preparation for the formation of the Grateful Gypsy Bistro.

The mobile bistro is a passion and dream for the Freeman sisters. It serves the greater San Joaquin area and Sierra Foothills of California. They also recently became a food vendor for the internationally famous Infineon Raceway which is located in the beautiful wine country of Sonoma, California.

The bistro menu changes with the seasons; specials change daily. The bistro is committed to using local ingredients based on good farming practices.

Daily locations and menus are updated on Facebook and Twitter. The sisters roam the countryside offering fresh, tasty fare at reasonable prices. The Grateful Gypsy Bistro is available for private and corporate events as well.

The native Northern California sisters were born and raised in Linden, a small farming community in the San Joaquin Valley. Their grandfather, George Di Carlo, emigrated from Sicily to California where he began farming and eventually went into the restaurant business. Orval Freeman, their paternal grandfather, raised livestock. It was only natural that the sisters gained an appreciation for seasonally harvested produce, freshly made cream, homemade butter, and free-range eggs.