Notes from a Young Black Chef by Kwame Onwuachi (2019,271 pages) I didn’t know who Kwame Onwuachi was before picking up this book. I found it while browsing one of my favorite bookstores and, honestly, chose it because the title and cover caught my attention. I expected a glimpse into a chef’s life and, more importantly, food from a Black perspective. I later learned that Onwuachi had been a contestant on Top Chef—a show I don’t watch because it feels like too much manufactured drama and not enough food—but that ends up being only a very small part of his story.
Onwuachi tells the story of his life from early childhood to the opening of his fine-dining restaurant in Washington, D.C., one of the city’s most talked-about and expensive restaurants—which then closed just three months later. He reflects on the major experiences that shaped him, the role food played throughout his life, and, above all, his drive and determination. Not every decision he made was a good one, but that is part of what makes the memoir feel honest. I especially enjoyed reading about his upbringing: being sent to Nigeria to “learn respect” and discovering more about his heritage and food culture, selling candy bars in the New York City subway to fund his first business, studying at the Culinary Institute of America, and working in kitchens across New York and the South. He also writes vividly about food. As he puts it, his ancestors were “steeped in the curries and jerk of Jamaica and founded in the stews and roux’s, gumbo and jambalaya of Louisiana.” (213)This book includes a few recipes, but it is much more than a cookbook. It is a memoir about heritage, the realities of the culinary world, and a Black perspective on food.
I would highly recommend this book to anyone interested in food, the life of a chef, or simply a compelling story of resilience.
Real Life of an MSW 