Publisher Description
This inspiring memoir, now adapted for young adults, chronicles Top Chef star and Forbes and Zagat 30 Under 30 phenom Kwame Onwuachi's incredible and odds-defying fame in the food world after a tough childhood in the Bronx and Nigeria. Food was Kwame Onwuachi's first great love. He connected to cooking via his mother, in the family's modest Bronx apartment. From that spark, he launched his own catering company with twenty thousand dollars he made selling candy on the subway and trained in the kitchens of some of the most acclaimed restaurants in the country. He faced many challenges on the road to success, including breaking free of a dangerous downward spiral due to temptation and easy money, and grappling with just how unwelcoming the world of fine dining can be for people of color. Born on Long Island and raised in New York City, Nigeria, and Louisiana, Kwame Onwuachi's incredible story is one of survival and ingenuity in the face of adversity. Praise for the adult edition of NOTES FROM A YOUNG BLACK CHEF "Kwame Onwuachi's story shines a light on food and culture not just in American restaurants or African American communities but around the world." --Questlove "Fierce and inspiring. . . . This rip-roaring tale of ambition is also a sobering account of racism in and out of the food industry." --New York Tiimes Book Review
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About the Authors
Joshua David Stein is a Brooklyn-based author and journalist. He’s the editor-at-large at Fatherly and the host of the Fatherly Podcast, the co-author of Food & Beer, the U.S. editor of Where Chefs Eat, and the author of the children’s books Can I Eat That?, What’s Cooking?, and Brick: Who Found Herself In Architecture. He was the restaurant critic for the New York Observer until he quit in protest (because #nevertrump) and currently writes “The Trencherman,” a food column for the Village Voice.
Kwame Onwuachi is the Executive Chef at Kith and Kin in Washington, D.C. Born in Long Island and raised in the Bronx and Nigeria, he trained at the Culinary Institute of America and worked at Per Se and Eleven Madison Park before opening his own restaurant. A former Top Chef contestant, Onwuachi has been named a “30 Under 30” honoree by both Zagat and Forbes.