Casa Sarria: Nicaraguan Food and Ambience

Oct 20

Blog post

Casa Sarria is a Nicaraguan micro restaurant at home: one private courtyard, one long table, and Chef Anthony cooking for a small group of guests. The night was both a planned video production and a test run for the restaurant: real food, real service, and our cameras capturing the feeling. More gathering than restaurant. More experience than service.

The plan

We built the day around one idea: the same table, three times. Empty in the late sun, full at golden hour, and glowing after dark. Every shot on the list served that arc, from the first herbs on the cutting board to the last bite of dessert.

We planned it shot by shot in a storyboard. We shot hero food stills from 2:00 to 4:00 PM. We set the courtyard and lit the smoking grill before guests arrived. Golden hour from about 5:15 to 6:30. Dinner and night by firelight.

The food

We started in the kitchen with hero stills of the menu, each dish finished on camera. The welcome board: cheese, fruit, and honey. Sol Dorado, a fresh carrot-and-orange drink. We plated and photographed empanadas, arancini, and frijoles before the first guest walked in.

The guests

Friends and models filled the courtyard, and Casa Sarria's own servers worked the night. We kept it real: drinks in hand, people talking, and the crew shooting around them. At golden hour, we moved people to the light, not the other way around. Small groups in the gazebo arches, trays crossing the patio, the first sip.

The fire

As the sun went down, the grill took over. A tomahawk steak with broccolini and lemons, garlic herb butter melting on the crust, then the slice and the reveal. Bistro lights, lanterns, and candles carried the rest of the night.

The finish

The night closed with Pan de Mi Madre, Chef Anthony's dessert, dusted with sugar and served with fresh berries. We followed it from the kitchen to the table and into the guests' hands

What Casa Sarria got

65 finished photos: hero food, plated courses, and lifestyle
A horizontal hero video for the website
A vertical hero video for Reels and TikTok
Video stills and clips for social posts and menus

All in one day, with one small team. We planned, styled, lit, shot, edited, and color-graded everything in-house.

Planning a restaurant, menu or hospitality shoot? Book a free call and we'll map out your day, shot by shot.

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Judy Doherty

I am a food, beverage, and CPG product photographer specializing in photos, stop motion, and video, with over 250,000 visuals delivered worldwide. Based in Southern California and formerly in the San Francisco Bay Area, I work in my studio, throughout California, and on location nationwide. Clients hire me for my eye, creative direction, and passion for taking their idea to the next level.

My strength lies in a nimble and lean creative process. Clients love getting creative content at a reasonable cost since my studio can art direct, style, and shoot their images quickly and on budget. My studio features an extensive surface library and prop house with a fully equipped kitchen and two shooting studios.

I bring over 20 years of professional culinary experience and more than a decade in commercial photography. My work as a chef, stylist, and photographer has earned many awards, including APA Top 100, ACF Gold Medal, and a juried fine art photo exhibit at Art Basel Miami. I was Executive Pastry Chef for two Hyatt Hotels and Resorts before completing two post-baccalaureate certificates for Visual Art and Graphic Design at U.C. Berkeley Extension in San Francisco.

https://judydohertyphotography.com