The Story Behind Legit Queso: How a Love for Queso Turned Into a Brand

If you throw a party, someone is going to actively look for the cheese dip. It is a universal truth of snacking. Yet, despite being the centerpiece of almost every gathering, the queso market has been sitting still for decades, offering the same overly processed stuff we grew up with.

I decided to disrupt that market. Here is the scoop on how Legit Queso came to life.

Chef K’s Story

I’m Kiersten, usually known as Chef K, and my culinary background is rooted in the local beauty of farm-to-table cooking. Before I ever thought about launching a queso business, I spent my entrepreneurial career developing new food business ideas and bringing them to life. Spending time at the Culinary Institute of America in Napa Valley shifted how I view food. I love sharing real food with good people, and using my passion and experience to bring new concepts to market.

What Is Legit Queso and How Did the Brand Begin?

The Legit Queso brand officially began in 2018 as a way to bring high-quality, chef-crafted cheese dip directly to consumers. I wanted to create something incredibly convenient that didn't compromise on real, whole ingredients. We started making small batches, putting the absolute best ingredients into every container, and setting out to disrupt the queso market that still needs a shake-up.

Where Did Your Love for Queso Start?

Like many people, my cheese dip experience started during childhood with the classic Velveeta and Rotel combo at most get-togethers. Early on, that was the only style of queso I knew. Once I became a chef and dove into the farm-to-table movement, my standards for food expanded. I experimented with a totally revamped, better-for-you queso for a Super Bowl party using real ingredients. It was a hit, and the rest is history.

When Did You First Realize Queso Could Become a CPG?

I saw the true consumer packaged goods (CPG) potential when we routinely sold out after launching locally in Kansas City in 2018. Good things continued when we brought the product to Napa Valley under the Legit Provisions banner in 2020. We proved the model during Covid, and knew then we had a great product, with fun, sustainable packaging that consumers responded to.

What Was the Moment That Made You Decide to Launch Legit Queso?

The moment clicked when I realized customers on the West Coast ate cheese dip just as much as people in the Midwest. Seeing that universal affinity for cheese dip proved the market viability right then and there. If the culinary crowds in Napa were excited about a new kind of queso, just like the football fans in Kansas City, I knew we had something special to offer.

What Are the Biggest Challenges of starting a CPG brand?

Running a business in a highly regulated state like California, navigating large-scale co-manufacturing, and breaking into big retail chains have been some of our biggest hurdles. Taking a recipe from a chef’s mixing bowl and scaling it up to run on formulated production lines is incredibly tricky. We work with many industry experts to keep the quality of the product consistent at scale, while navigating the complex game of retail distribution.

How Did You Develop the Recipe for Legit Queso?

We locked down the final recipe after years of testing and formulating, lots of customer and team feedback, and running expert analyses. Finding the perfect container and branding partner was just as important as having the perfect flavors. We made the decision up front to pursue sustainable packaging over plastic, and  this earth friendly investment is part of our ethos.

What Makes Legit Queso Different From Other Queso Dips?

We combine clean, better-for-you ingredients with wildly fun, sustainable packaging that captures our brand's loud personality. The legacy queso market hasn’t been disrupted in decades. Most of us grew up eating the exact same heavily processed yellow/orange blocks, and nothing challenged that status quo until now. We successfully make it easy for consumers to grab a better choice without sacrificing the flavor they crave.

How Did You Turn a Simple Idea Into a Real Product People Could Buy?

Transforming a kitchen batch into products like our Queso Mac - Party 6 Pack means refusing to compromise on farm-to-table values. I pulled from my culinary background to source the right ingredients, found partners willing to respect my paper packaging requirements, and slowly built infrastructure and an amazing team. It took patience, but seeing an eco-friendly box land on a customer's doorstep makes the long hours worth it. There’s nothing better than hearing feedback from a customer that our Queso is the best they’ve ever had!

What Has Been the Most Surprising Part of Building the Brand?

One of the biggest challenges has been the timeline required to actually take a food product from concept to shelf.  It’s a big investment in time and money to build the brand and break into the market. We’ve also learned a lot about distribution. Shipping a perishable, frozen product is expensive and we’re constantly looking for ways to reduce those costs for our customers. 

How Do You Hope People Experience Legit Queso at Their Own Gatherings?

We want our customers to throw a party and be happily surprised by how incredibly easy it is to serve a better-for-you, heat and eat, grab and go queso. Snacking should be fun. With Legit Queso you get that warm, rich feeling of complete indulgence, without the guilt. On top of that, you get to feel good about your purchasing decision thanks to our sustainable packaging.

What’s Next for Legit Queso?

We are working on some fun collaborations in the near future. I would love to partner with an awesome chip company; something in the vein of Food Should Taste Good, or Vaca Chips tallo brand. Creating a crossover with Philadelphia cream cheese or teaming up with a killer salsa brand right alongside our queso would be cool. Finding a cost effective way to upgrade to all organic ingredients would be my ideal.  Getting our real queso into places still using that ‘fake orange stuff’ like fast food chains, sports stadiums, and movie theaters is a big goal for us. Stay tuned, we are cooking up some amazing things!

Ready to Upgrade Your Snack Game?

At the end of the day, elevating your favorite foods shouldn’t mean hours of prep or settling for processed junk. Whether you’re casually drizzling it over weeknight roasted veggie tacos, smothering a baked potato, or keeping it classic at a last-minute gathering with a simple bowl of chips, Legit Queso is your ultimate shortcut to a better, much tastier bite.

Ready to add a little culinary adventure to your freezer? Head over to the Legit Queso Shop to stock up, and be sure to come hang out with us on Instagram for deliciously easy recipe hacks and updates on what we're cooking up next!

Frequently Asked Questions

• Who started Legit Queso?

  Legit Queso was started by Kiersten, also known as Chef K, a professional chef with a farm-to-table culinary background.

• How did Legit Queso get started?

  Legit Queso officially began in 2018 after Chef K created a better-for-you queso made with real ingredients and saw strong demand after launching locally in Kansas City.

• Who is Chef K?

  Chef K is Kiersten, the founder of Legit Queso and a professional chef who used her farm-to-table experience to create a cleaner, chef-crafted queso.