Among the regular pictures I see on my Instagram feed of my family and friends, there is one person's pictures that I look forward to the most, and obviously it's a foodie account: Nico Norena from The Succulent Bite, or @succulentbite. His page is well-known across our city, with big names like Food Network, as well as several local Miami favorites like The Salty Donut and Night Owl Cookies following his every post.
This isn't your average foodie account; his content, which is all original, lures you in with the incredible angles he takes his videos and pictures from. His videos are usually frames of about one to two seconds long, the perfect length to show a dramatic cheese pull, or an elegant drip of chocolate. His pictures are just as enticing, and he always makes sure to tag the source or name of the restaurant so the whole city can grab a bite of the deliciousness, too.
Background
Nico Norena, the founder and influencer, was born in Chicago and raised in Madrid, Spain. His Colombian family heavily influenced the cuisine he grew up eating. As an avid traveler with a cultural family background, he's been exposed to cuisines from all over the world, and loves finding new things and places to eat. Norena has a passion for photography, which was fueled with several years of photography and videography classes.
The Succulent Bite is Norena's official brand, with almost 240K followers, combining all of his Instagram and Facebook followings. The brand has been growing over the past few years, and started when Norena decided to combine both of the things he loves: food and photography. Thus, The Succulent Bite was born. For Norena, this is a full time job, and luckily, his dream one. He started almost three years ago, building his name from the ground up, completely by himself. The well-liked social media personality is a believer in passion and hard work, and the power that those two things have on making dreams happen.
When asked about the opportunities that this brand has been able to provide him, Norena says, "The most exciting part is that every day brings a new adventure. There really is a story behind every bite." Imagine being able to try new foods, go to new places, and meet people just like you every single day; for Norena, this is exactly what he gets to do, and there is nothing he loves more than sharing these experiences with others through social networks.
Events
On February 16th, The Succulent Bite hosted its very first event titled "Friday Feels" at the Betsy Hotel in South Beach. It included bites and drinks for foodies from all over the city. According to Norena, the event went "really well": it was sold out, hosted over 200 guests, had great music, and delicious food and great drinks.
He plans on attending the popular South Beach Wine and Food Festival, a huge festival that benefits our own FIU's School of Hospitality, so make sure to check him out there! SOBE WFF runs this weekend from February 21st to 25th; for a full list of events, go to sobewff.org.
For more mouth-watering pictures and videos, you can follow The Succulent Bite on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, or on his website.