Today we’d like to introduce you to Monique Bonanno.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
My journey into entrepreneurship wasn’t exactly a straight line, but looking back, I truly believe everything I’ve done personally and professionally has led me to where I am today.
I’m a Sarasota native with Cuban and Italian roots, and food and hospitality have always been a big part of my life. My father, Chef Steven Bonanno, was a chef, and although he has passed, his influence shaped the way I think about food, hospitality, and bringing people together. Growing up, I learned that food was about so much more than what was on the plate. It was about creating experiences, building connections, and making memories around the table.
I graduated from the University of Florida with a degree in Hospitality and Tourism Management with a minor in Business Administration. I went on to spend more than 15 years building my career in corporate hospitality, marketing, and brand development. Along the way, I had the opportunity to work with companies including Hilton Hotels, Southwest Airlines, Aramark, and Compass Group. Those experiences gave me an incredible foundation in operations, customer experience, branding, and understanding what makes a hospitality business successful.
But somewhere along the way, I realized I wanted to take everything I had learned and build something of my own.
I founded Monique Nicole Creative, my marketing and creative business, where I could use my experience in brand strategy, marketing, and content development to help other small businesses grow. At the same time, I had this growing desire to create a hospitality concept that combined my professional experience with something much more personal.
That’s where Bonanno’s Bagels came in.
Inspired by my dad’s Northeast roots, my love for Northeast food culture, and the neighborhood bagel shops that have so much personality, I wanted to bring a little bit of that experience to Sarasota — but with my own creative spin.
In 2024, I launched Bonanno’s Bagels out of a tiny 5-by-8-foot mobile trailer. The concept was simple: great NY-style bagels, house-made specialty schmears, craft coffee, and a brand that felt welcoming, fun, and a little different from anything else in the area.
What many people don’t realize is just how hands-on I am with this business. I’m the person dreaming up new menu items, developing specialty coffee drinks, preparing schmears, managing the finances, creating the marketing, booking events, and often serving customers directly from the trailer window. On any given day, I’m wearing about ten different hats before most people have finished their first cup of coffee!
And while social media often highlights the fun side of entrepreneurship, building a business from the ground up is anything but glamorous. There have been countless early mornings, long days, sacrifices, unexpected challenges, and plenty of moments where I’ve had to figure things out as I go.
But watching an idea turn into a locally recognizable business with a loyal community of customers has been one of the most rewarding experiences of my life.
In just two years, Bonanno’s Bagels has received several local honors, including Platinum for Best Local Bagel and Silver for Best Local Food Truck in SRQ Magazine’s 2026 Best of SRQ Local Awards, along with Bronze for Best Food Truck in the 2026 Best of Sarasota Awards.
As proud as I am of those accomplishments, what means even more to me are the relationships I’ve built along the way. The regulars who follow our little bagel trailer from market to market, the customers who have become friends, and the people who continue to recommend Bonanno’s Bagels to others are what make this journey so special.
Today, Bonanno’s Bagels has grown into a mobile hospitality brand serving farmers markets, community pop-ups, corporate events, private celebrations, weddings and catering clients throughout Sarasota and the surrounding areas. I’ve also expanded into specialty coffee experiences through my coffee cart Caffè Bonanno, allowing me to bring another side of my hospitality vision to private events and celebrations indoor.
And while I’m incredibly proud of how far we’ve come, I still feel like we’re just getting started.
My long-term vision is to take Bonanno’s Bagels beyond Sarasota, explore opportunities in new markets, and continue building a recognizable hospitality brand that blends great food, creativity, culture, and memorable experiences.
If there’s one thing this journey has taught me, it’s that you don’t need to start with something big to build something meaningful. Sometimes all it takes is a little trailer, a really good idea, a lot of determination, and the willingness to show up every single day and figure things out along the way.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Absolutely not! One of the biggest lessons I’ve learned is that there’s a huge difference between having a passion for something and turning it into a sustainable business. As a small business owner, I wear just about every hat imaginable. I’m the bagel maker, the barista, the menu developer, the marketing department, the accountant, the event coordinator, the purchasing manager, and the person responsible for moving that little trailer from one location to the next. Some mornings start long before the sun comes up, and the work certainly doesn’t stop when the serving window closes. It’s physically demanding, mentally exhausting at times, and requires a level of dedication that’s difficult to fully understand until you’re living it.
The financial realities of entrepreneurship have also been one of my biggest learning curves. Between rising ingredient costs, equipment, insurance, and the everyday expenses of operating a mobile food business, every decision matters. Add Florida’s unpredictable weather and seasonal fluctuations into the mix, and you quickly learn that even the best-laid plans can change overnight. I’ve had rainy mornings turn into canceled events, slower seasons that required me to rethink my strategy, and plenty of moments where I’ve had to make difficult decisions about which opportunities were truly worth pursuing. My corporate hospitality background gave me a strong business foundation, but entrepreneurship has taught me how to be resourceful, adaptable, and incredibly intentional with my time and resources.
There have certainly been moments of exhaustion, self-doubt, and wondering how I’ll navigate the next obstacle, but every challenge has made me a more confident and resilient business owner. I’ve learned that growth isn’t always about saying yes to every opportunity. Sometimes it’s about knowing when to say no, protecting what you’ve worked so hard to build, and making decisions that support the long-term health of your business. It hasn’t been an easy road, but it’s been one of the most rewarding journeys of my life.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
My professional career spans more than 15 years in hospitality, marketing, operations, and brand development, and I’ve been fortunate to experience the industry from several different perspectives. I graduated from the University of Florida with a degree in Hospitality and Tourism Management, and my early career included opportunities with Hilton, where I gained experience in corporate events, hotel operations, and the timeshare industry. I also worked as a front desk manager at Hampton Inn, which gave me a strong foundation in guest relations and hospitality operations. From there, I spent nearly nine years with Aramark, beginning at my alma mater, the University of Florida, where I worked across campus dining operations, marketing, national restaurant brand partnerships, and university meal plan programs. I was eventually promoted into a district marketing leadership role at Loyola University Chicago, where I helped oversee marketing strategy, student engagement, and dining initiatives. In 2019, I transitioned to Compass Group, expanding my experience into corporate dining, experiential hospitality, and innovative foodservice concepts. One of my favorite projects was helping launch a FoodWorks Local pilot program that brought independent Chicago food businesses into Northwestern University’s football game-day experience using three company-owned food trucks. I also supported dining operations across Northwestern’s main campus and its medical and law school environments.
Throughout my career, I’ve always been drawn to opportunities where hospitality, creativity, and marketing intersect. Whether developing a marketing campaign, launching a dining concept, coordinating a corporate event, or building relationships with local businesses, I’ve developed a reputation for bringing creative ideas to life while understanding the operational strategy required to execute them. I think what sets me apart is my ability to see both the big picture and the smallest details. I understand the importance of budgets, logistics, customer experience, and business performance just as much as storytelling, branding, and creating something memorable. Today, I bring that experience into both Monique Nicole Creative, my marketing and brand strategy business, and Bonanno’s Bagels, my award-winning mobile hospitality concept. What I’m most proud of is how I’ve taken everything I’ve learned throughout my corporate career and used it to create businesses that reflect my own vision. Looking back, every chapter of my professional journey has contributed to the entrepreneur and business owner I am today.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.bonannosbagels.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bonannosbagels
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/people/Bonannos-Bagels/61558888002103/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/moniquebonanno/
- Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@bonannos.bagels
