Rising Stars: Meet Chef Jerome Brown of Chicago

Today we’d like to introduce you to Chef Jerome Brown.

Chef Jerome, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
My story began in East Orange, New Jersey at the age of 7. Cooking was the gift that GOD gave me.
My formal training came by way of the US Army
I went in as a cook and got certified as a Chef in 1988 while being stationed in South Korea.
Over the years I became a personal chef for NBA and NFL athletes as well as different entertainers.
Through the years of having such high profile names on my resume, the Food Network came calling and the rest is history.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
As with anyone who’s found any level of success, I’ve certainly had my share of obstacles. Mostly due to financial challenges. I can remember the days of sleeping on my sister’s sofa. Every summer after the NBA season. Oftentimes I had no clue where my next tank of gas was coming from. But, I had to keep the faith that what I was doing was going to pan out.
Having two kids in college, and trying to find the next gig was always a challenge during the off season. Until I learned to plan for those moments, I kept the same challenges.
Also, when I wasn’t as known as I am now, I had a lot of doors closed in my face. The moments when I knew I could do the job and probably just as good as my counterpart, I heard the word “NO” more times than I could count. But I kept the faith until I found my niche. Once I found my lane, I stayed in it and work hard until the next level came about. I didn’t give up, I didn’t fold in the times I really wanted to. I kept pressing until better days came.

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I’m known as the ‘Chef to the Stars’. For 27 seasons I was a personal chef to NBA and NFL clients. I specialized in helping athletes prepare and maintain a healthy diet as they would get ready for the upcoming season. Over the years I was in charge of hiring chefs for clients who needed help maintaining their weight and also keeping their entire families healthy.
I think the thing that set me apart from other chefs is that, even though my clients were eating healthy, they didn’t go away feeling like they were missing anything. The flavor was still there, the portions made sense, and ultimately they achieved their personal goals through nutrition.
Shaquille O’Neal was once quoted saying that “For the first time in my career, I was able to lose weight while inactive.” That was a big deal. Shaq, better known as the ‘Big Diesel’, had to stay in shape to perform at an optimal level, That was not always an easy task. So in an effort to make it happen, he hired me and I took it very seriously.
I’d say the thing that I’m most proud of is that, those high-end clients put their trust in me in order to affect their lives in a way that allowed them to extend their careers in some cases, and put smiles on the faces of millions of fans around the world.

Can you talk to us a bit about happiness and what makes you happy?
Some of the things that make me happy are cooking of course, traveling, billiards, binge watching tv shows and movies. Cooking affords me the ability to travel all over the world. Because of that, life is exciting. I get to meet new people all of the time. I get to see things that most would only dream of. I can remember going to work over in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. I stood at the Red Sea and just marveled at what I saw. It overlooked King Fahd bin Abdul Aziz al Saud’s palace. At that time, i’d never seen anything like it. Well that’s the story of my life. It’s filled with moments like that. It’s the type of thing that I wish my entire family can see and for anyone to experience.
It also makes me happy to know when I’ve played a part of making someone’s special event come to life by way of food. In my first cookbook I wrote the quote that “Great service is long remembered after a good meal.” I stand on that quote, It’s the creed that I live by. For me, it’s more than putting a smile on someone’s face after they have tasted the food. It’s knowing that the assignment was not only completed, but completed on an excellent level. It’s the very thing that long lasting relationships are made of. That’s what makes me happy!

Pricing:

• Pricing is based on the amount of people and the menu. In addition to that, logistics play a huge role in pricing as well. For example, there’s an additional charge if I’m catering your event and I have to transfer your food from one place to the other.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.chefrome.com
• Instagram: Chef_Jerome_Brown
• Facebook: Chef Jerome Brown
• LinkedIn: Chef Jerome Brown
• Twitter: ChefJRomeBrown
• Youtube: @cookwithrome Chef Jerome Brown
• Other: Wikipedia: Melvin Jerome Brown