We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Chayse Deandre. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Chayse below.
Alright, Chayse thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Covid has brought about so many changes – has your business model changed?
At the brink of Covid, I was then working as an Executive Sous Chef for a high-volume restaurant in Penn Quarter, Washington, D.C. Shortly after we were ordered to temporarily close the business until the CDC could work on safe protocols to serve the community, our restaurant provided a relief program for the locals to get fresh groceries, household necessities and (2) hot meals per day. We did this program from March until about June/July. When the business was given the green-light to open back up with the new safety protocols, I chose to take a month off from work to reset. During this reset, I had an epiphany to go into business for myself full-time. My history in the restaurants and most recently during covid, afforded me more experience with meal planning and curating for the back-of-the-house, but also managing and admin work for the front-of-the-house. These tools are exactly what one would need to jump start an independent business; So I took the leap of faith and it paid off!
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.
As Chefs we get asked these questions all the time; When did you learn to cook? How do you know this is the profession you wanted to be in?
For me it was very easy. I knew I wanted to become a chef by the age of 15. I come from a family of phenomenal cooks. No one professionally, but a professional couldn’t create better dishes than the family I’ve learned from. During high school, I started the “Master Chefs Club” extracurricular program. This program was for the kids like myself who had a passion for cooking. We would cook for all the school events, grow vegetables in the garden, fellowship and create recipes, etc. I also was in the Pro-Start program, which. is a two year culinary course you take in the latter years of high school. Graduating I knew there was one place I wanted to go after; The Art Institute of Washington. I liked school because they not only taught you from the basics of modern cooking but also the financial side and other knowledge you would need to be successful in this industry. One day I went down to. a job fair my school was having on-site, and then I was recruited for Clydes of Gallery Place. The restaurant is solely responsible for the start of my career. I initially started as a back-waiter because they needed more help at the time. I then transitioned to a line cook and work my way up to a commis chef. I was the only line cook ever to have multiple items on the menu, including. “The Chayse Burger”. I was the Executive Chefs right hand man not only because he trusted me, but he saw the drive and ambition I had. It would be safe to say that my fellow coworkers were there to make money; I was there to make foundation.
Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?
Coming from a high-volume restaurant such as Clyde’s of Gallery Place, and successfully becoming one of the best cooks there at a young age can boost your ego a little bit. After 5 years, I decided to transition with some of the higher management to a new steakhouse that was opening soon; Rare Steaks and Seafood. Although I came in with high regards from the management team already signed on, I still had to interview. Apart of why any job I’ve applied and interviewed with has hired me is most likely the passion in how I speak about my work. So, of course I was hired. They brought me on as the Chef de Partie. I was the overseer of the raw bar on the first level of the restaurant. Aside from helping curate items for the menu at the raw bar, I was told to literally tell my team what do to and not do it myself. As someone who comes from a humble background, and has been taught you have to work hard to achieve what you want, these orders didn’t malign with my work ethic. A few months in I realized perhaps I’ve jumped the gun on this one. I quit the team without any plans setup.
There was a lull period of me figuring out whats next for me, while also beating myself up for not having a backup plan in the works already. However, as they people say sometimes, it’s not always what you know but who you know. Fortunately, the people I know are very knowledgeable about my work and what I can bring to the table. I contacted an old manager from Clyde’s who’d just began as General Manager with a newer restaurant group, Knead Hospitality. She brought me on instantly. I had to start as a line cook, as they had a full team already but two months in I was promoted to Sous Chef. So you have to trust your gut! You may have to take a step back sometimes, to jumped much further soon.
Can you tell us about what’s worked well for you in terms of growing your clientele?
As someone who loves being on social media and taking pictures, I’m not too great on the marketing side. I will say, what has been the most effective strategy for growing my business and engaging new clientele is consistency. If you’re consistently giving 10/10 in your work, word of mouth will do the job for you. I promote often on social media, however 90% of my clients are new clients that reach out after they’ve had my food at a party or event they’ve attended. I get a guaranteed 2-4 new clients minimum from every event I do. That pushes me to also make sure the dishes I present are not only beautiful on the eye but also amazing in flavor.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: @chefchaysedeandre @keepitsexyandco