Jul 23, 2020
Notes From A Young Black Chef: A Memoir by Kwame Onwuachi
The rise and fall of Kwame Onwuachi’s DC restaurant (Shaw Bijou) was a pretty compelling / high profile story: underestimated “young Black chef” opens one of the most expensive tasting restaurants in DC, and after just a few months in business, the restaurant closes. But not for the reasons you might think…⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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Funny, then, that 85% of the book is NOT about Shaw Bijou (nor is it a Top Chef tell all). 🤔⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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Kwame’s is a life defined by places, tastes, and smells (and watching his mom work as a solorpeneur caterer for most of HER life). ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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This is a story that addresses casual & overt racism in the service industry, and how African food is not seen as “cultured” in the pretentious-af fine dining world. 🙄 It’s about ancestors and believing in yourself… and what it means to inhabit a mean, cutthroat culture, work your ass off, and then stand up and say, “hey, maybe the culture doesn’t have to be like this… ?”⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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Kwame is a great narrator, and I looooved hearing about him BS’ing his way into & out of trouble (and also his first fine dining job lol). ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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But what I love most is that he’s committed to creating a different kind of kitchen culture. One that’s diverse & inclusive, free from the toxic masculinity and abuse that characterizes most kitchens. WHAT A RELIEF DUDE. It’s about freaking time.⠀⠀
About Sam
Samantha Pollack is a Copywriter & Creative Director who works with ethically minded, mission driven businesses who are actively trying to reshape our culture (and possibly tear down the patriarchy). She’s also the founder of The Highly Sensitive Business Owner, a 12-week online program that helps HSPs & neurodivergent business owners create healthier, more sustainable systems in their work.
Sam also writes about feminism, privilege, pop culture, entrepreneurship, the creative process, and whatever else is on her mind. She currently lives in Asheville, NC.
Emails for cult thought leaders.
(Personality included.)
Want to learn how to craft emails that inspire action and engagement WITHOUT the “tried and true” (cough: patriarchal) norms we’ve all been taught?
I’m doing it, and I can show you how to do it, too.
(But sometimes, I also like to write about the books I’m reading, or the creative process, or the entrepreneurial experience, or why I hate Steve Jobs, or how I met my BFF. I’ll send you emails like that, too.)
*Just kidding. It’s only an email list.
Books. Cats. Rants. Drawrings.
(and every couple months or so, an unexplained absence 🤷🏻)
