We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Marcus Drones. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Marcus below.

Marcus, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Can you talk to us about how you learned to do what you do?

So I decided to go to Auguste Escoffier School of Culinary Arts in Austin, Tx. There I was taught by some of the best Chefs around. While getting my education at school, they taught me so many techniques in cooking. So many people think that cooking is boiling water and adding salt and pepper but it is much deeper that that. Preparing food is a science and when it comes to baking, it is even more precise. I’d say to anyone interested in this field of work, you have to have a good listening ear and be disciplined. So many things can go wrong in the kitchen that can cause damage to you, the equipment, or the place itself.

I approached everyday in the kitchen as a learning experience. The skills that were most essential to me is willingness. There are moments I can remember that I didn’t want to do the work or do an event but I had the will to do it because my dream and passion is food. The joy I get when I see someone’s smile after eating a dish that I prepare is a great feeling.

There is always obstacles that stand in the way. My biggest obstacle was my own thought process. I remember is culinary school I was assigned to make the biscuits for this meal we were preparing. And as time got closer to plate the food, my biscuits flavor profile didn’t match with what I was looking for. So I threw the entire batch on the back of the stove and started making a new batch of biscuits. The chef walked around and saw the bad batch and grabbed one and he ate it. Come to find out, the “bad” batch was better than the other batch I made. I would over-think the dish and don’t give myself the credit I deserve when cooking.

Marcus, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

For the readers that haven’t meet me, My name is Marcus Drones. I’m the Owner and Executive Chef of Aubrey’s Heaven. We specialized in elevating comfort food where our first ingredient is LOVE. I have done small events and larger events. I decided to further my education in Culinary because I was working a job and fell ill. While I was out on leave, there were talks of terminating me due to my store performance. One of the best decisions I’ve made was leave and pursue my dream. Now, don’t think when I got to culinary school, it was easy because it was not. So many things happened. I’m currently writing a book on my culinary experience. So I look forward to sharing more about my journey with the readers.

I get excited when I get a client and ask them what do they have in mind for food. I’m able to create a flavor profile with the information I receive. I also can introduce them to a different dish or cuisine. My heart smiles when I get feedback from my clients on the food I prepare for them. They are unaware of the time and effort I put in to creating a meal for them. I’m able to create a menu for them, go shopping for the ingredients, prepare, and serve my clients and that brings so much joy to me!

We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?

So I built my audience by ALWAYS posting my food. Most of the time, I’m cooking for myself. There would be a dish I’d like to get into the kitchen and try and once I do that, I share it on my social sites. It’s all about exposure. Share EVERYTHING. I’ve made some granolas and shared it. One of the good things about cooking is that people eat with their eyes first. The food on the plate has to be appetizing to someone that has no idea what it taste like. Then how I describe the food is where my clients tastebuds become active. For an example, let’s take chicken tenders and fries. That sounds pretty boring. So to elevate this and make it more appealing and appetizing, I would describe it has, “honey lemon pepper chicken tenders and waffle fries dusted with a smoked applewood sea salt.” My client can actually taste the food by reading it and would be interested in trying it. So share your work as much as possible.

Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?

My goal with food is to show communities that food is important. I grew up in major city that closed a lot of grocery stores. This made it difficult for my community to eat fresh fruit and vegetables. My state is also number 1 in almost every category of anything that is unhealthy. I’d love to get involved in the community to purchase land and grow fruits and vegetables for the community and show them how to cook the food they grew. I want to teach kids to grow, harvest and cook. One day, I’d own a food truck and the food that is harvested will be showcased in my dish to give recognition to the people that grew it. I believe my purpose in life is to serve and teach. What better way to do that than cooking. No matter the language, food brings people together and the world could use a lot more togetherness and love. That’s my goal, to make my community better by serving food.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: aubreysheaven
• Twitter: aubreysheaven

Image Credits
Marcus Drones