It would be strange to me for you not to know Chef Randall's amazing resume. He has been a chef instructor, executive chef, and cookbook author. His work has garnered him recognition in the form of magazine and newspaper articles nationwide and has placed him on television as both star and culinary and historical expert on various programs. He has been the deserving recipient of numerous honors and awards from some of our industry's most prestigious organizations and while all this is impressive to be sure, what I found in my research and chat with him was that his educational and philanthropic work is much more central to who he is as a person.
The most shining example of this would be the Taste Of Heritage Foundation which was the result of his passion for education. Chef Randall had a simple idea; he would call on other black chefs to show up and give back to the next generation of black chefs through cooking. He set up elaborate, multiple course dinners all over the country showcasing the work of black chefs, and in the process raised tens of thousands of scholarship dollars for student interested in culinary education. Throughout the 80's and 90’s chefs like Leah Chase, Edna Lewis, and Patrick Clarke, would all come out, cook, and fellowship while ensuring that more black students were classically trained and prepared to compete and flourish in the culinary arts. The thought makes me want to cry because it’s such an honest and tangible idea that promoted the ideals of family and community that our culture has always fostered. Taste of Heritage has basically been reborn through Culinary Wonders USA where Chef Erika Davis has accepted the baton handed off by Chef Randall and with his guidance and mentorship will continue the works he started.
Chef Randall spoke with me at length about blacks in this work. He told me about the 80’s and 90’s when publications like Nations Restaurant News and the New York Times were not only overlooking black chefs, but were convinced that we weren’t even viable in this work. He told of his efforts to showcase black chefs in television and print media. He talked about his fight for representation in national culinary organizations like ACF that were under servicing their minority members. He gave me a history lesson on how the government didn't even recognize this work as a profession until 1977, and how absurd it is to ask the question “where are all the black chefs” since this country’s culinary foundation was built on the backs of black cooks.
I left my talk with Chef Randall feeling a sense of belonging and of pride in the legacy that he helped pave for my generation of cooks. I felt a renewed sense of responsibility to learn more about our history in food and to make sure that I contribute to the discourse. Chef Randall joined Erika Davis and the other Culinary Wonders chefs in their amazing journey to foster fellowship among black chefs because that is what his life and career have always been about. He is our link to heritage, our generation’s champion, and a beautiful man that has a spirit that effects everyone he touches making them better people. A trip to his cooking school in Savannah, Ga. is described as a culinary pilgrimage because when you sit at his table you not only get fed delicious food, you feast on heritage in a way so substantive that you can't help but leave different than when you came. If you want to learn more about Chef Randall, The Chef Joe Randall Cooking School, and Culinary Wonder USA follow these links.
http://www.chefjoerandall.com/
http://hstrial-culinarywonde.intuitwebsites.com/JoeRandall.html
http://chefjoerandall.blogspot.com/http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-zo1Fm4RbkM
No comments:
Post a Comment