Father. Drummer. Golfer. Artist. Bills Fan. Chef. These are just a few words that encompass who Julian Bungo is. One thing for sure is that he has found his home at the ArcDeli as the Catering Coordinator.
A Career Built in the Kitchen
Julian came to The ArcDeli towards the end of January 2026 with an extensive background in food service starting right here in Rochester, at a now closed restaurant as a busboy and prep cook. This job kickstarted his years-long career in food service, with him learning from various chefs firsthand to learning from watching Gordon Ramsay on YouTube.
Over the years, Julian worked for local hospitals and colleges where he learned how to batch cook – or, in other words, to make a lot of food for a lot of people, sometimes on his own. His goal remained the same: to give people a food experience he would want for himself. He also gained expertise through working for world-renowned chef Wolfgang Puck, where he ran Puck’s wood-fired pizza program.
Through those experiences, he got his true passion for the food industry and customer service. Julian wanted to “break the trend” of a decline in good customer service, so he strives to give people the time and consideration he would want for himself. “People eat with their eyes first,” he says, so he brings in his skill as an artist to add flair to the food he makes, ensuring that the presentation is just as good as the taste itself.
All roads he was on led him to ArcDeli, where he truly believes he is supposed to be. The people that he helps support, through teaching them kitchen, cooking, baking, and customer service skills, have made this job all the more cherished. In his words, “as much as I support the people here, they support me, too.”
Finding a Home at ArcDeli
Since joining the ArcDeli, Julian has been welcomed by the staff and people supported who work at the Deli, as well as the wider Arc of Monroe community.
He has worked to elevate ArcDeli, especially regarding the catering business. Many customers of the ArcDeli have told Julian that they “notice the difference” in the quality of catering since he started. Despite all the work he has put in to make this change, he stresses at every catering delivery that it is the people supported that make ArcDeli Catering stand out above the rest. ArcDeli combines excellent food and service with opportunities for people to develop valuable job skills, something that Julian is very proud to be able to do.
When catering days are slow, he asks the people he supports what they would like to learn, whether it’s learning how to properly and safely use a knife to cut various foods, or to learn a favorite or fun recipe like McDonald’s or Wendy’s chicken nuggets, or a more complicated recipe like a garlic scape pesto.
On one occasion, he helped Mark, one of the people supported who works at ArcDeli, make a pizza. The minute it came out of the oven, a customer walked in, saw it and asked to buy the whole thing. And now he comes back every Friday to get another pizza made by Mark.
“Mark was so ecstatic; he was so proud,” Julian recalls.
Moments like those are reflected throughout Julian’s office. Its walls are full of photographs from catering deliveries he has attended with the people supported, printed emails from grateful customers, and cards from staff and the people supported welcoming him to the team. Together, they showcase his favorite memories of working at the ArcDeli and all the progress he has witnessed during his time there.
Julian takes pride in being a person that they want to learn from. He says, “they see how passionate I am; they see how hard I’m working, and then they kind of follow suit, and that goes to the staff as well. Staff here get so excited about the stuff that I make.”
Serving Up New Opportunities
Julian has focused on enhancing the catering program and creating more distinctive specials. For example, ArcDeli offers a unique lunch menu every Wednesday to the staff at The Arc of Monroe that work at the main building. A lot of the ideas for those lunches come from Julian, including naming specialty sandwiches after staff members, offering fun drinks, and finding new things that have not yet been offered.
He envisions further growth for ArcDeli Catering, with new ideas, new customers, and new opportunities at every turn for the people he supports. He says, “I can’t express enough how it’s so fulfilling to be able to come here and have fun, and in the meantime, impart my wisdom and experience.” With the goal of the ArcDeli being to teach the people supported enough that they will then go out and find meaningful employment elsewhere, Julian feels confident that he can help them reach that goal.
Want to learn more about ArcDeli? Visit the website at thearcdeli.com—and don’t forget to try out the wonderful food offered!