aAs the yacht slowly sails into another foreign port, properties that were only visible from the sea come into view. As you, the “accidental chef”, work on a glamorous yacht bound for many ports, the promise of adventure will bring a smile to your face and give you the opportunity to travel and explore the world…and more They even co-star in a reality show.
Is it like a dream? That’s the reality for 32-year-old Dominican-born self-taught chef Jonathan Shillingford (Chef Jono). And despite all his adventures, he still finds time to visit his family in the Dominican regularly. Dive into the river on a “natural island” with your loved ones and enjoy real river lime with delicious food.
“I’m proud to be Caribbean and proud to be Dominican. It’s important to me that people know that my country exists and that it’s not the Dominican Republic.” says the Season 9 co-star. below deck mediterranean stylewhich premiered on Bravo in June.
of below deck The series is one of the most popular reality shows in the world, and Chef Jono’s season features Captain Sandy Yawn, his crew, and eccentric guests aboard a luxury superyacht. mustique island — A tale of difficult challenges, late-night demands that require quick action, stories of food delays, and a test of patience and grit that Chef Jono must overcome as he quickly learns the surprisingly high expectations his guests have for his food. There was. There was also a spicy romance, which created tension among the crew.
It’s always a special treat to hear Caribbean accents on international shows, and stories from chefs like Trinidadian chef Natasha de Bourg (cast member) Jono are a special treat. below deck Season 2) — embraced his Caribbean identity. His food was generally to die for, and his culinary skills and creativity made us proud, entertained, inspired, and left hungry.
CCooking and architecture have always been Jono’s passions, and he rightly calls himself a culinary architect. He graduated from the Illinois Institute of Technology (Chicago) in 2013, earned a master’s degree in architecture and urban planning from the Architectural Institute of Design (London) in 2016, and has also worked in Paris, Antigua, and Dominica.
However, the trajectory of his career changed when the Antigua project failed to materialize. “I was very depressed. Compared to work in fast-paced cities like London, other architecture jobs were slow and not very appealing,” he says.
At that point in late 2016, he was based in Antigua, a huge hub for yachting. As fate would have it, his best friend, another yacht chef, asked him to do some temporary cooking work on a yacht for a week.
“I was very skeptical because I love cooking, and I thought if I did it professionally, it would take away the fun of cooking and I wouldn’t like it anymore,” he says. To his surprise, he enjoyed it even more and received glowing feedback.
He hopes that one day Caribbean cuisine will become as famous as Indian, Italian or Asian cuisine, and that more people will travel to experience it, beyond food festivals. .
When an opportunity presents itself, you must answer it. During the Caribbean yachting and sailing season (November to April), many boats dock in Antigua and throughout the region before heading to the Mediterranean Sea (May to October). So when the yacht he was building was ready for the two- to three-week journey to Europe, they invited Jono to join them. Two years later, Jono was still on that boat.
Fast forward to the present, and this “accidental chef” has happily spent about eight years in the yachting industry. “Food is a gift of love and it is in the hearts of the people of the Caribbean. It is in my heart and I am honored to share that gift,” Jono said in Barcelona, Spain. He explained this in a Zoom interview while aboard another yacht.
Although there are challenges to becoming a self-taught chef, Jono believes the creative process is like architecture, and he hasn’t given up on that. Let’s start with inspiration. Architects take inspiration from locations, buildings, or prerequisites from their clients. Conversely, food inspiration can also come from ingredients or dietary restrictions that force you to get creative and experiment, among other things.
Then there’s the execution. “In architecture, I’m designing buildings, and I feel like I’m also designing food, thinking about where things will fit on a plate, and where this course is going to fit into a five-course dinner. I’m thinking about whether or not I’ll hit it,” he explains.
SOh, what tips can a sassy, enthusiastic, well-traveled, self-taught reality TV chef give?His biggest tip is time management. On a typical day, as a solo chef, I prepare seven to eight meals for the crew and guests: breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Canapés. snacks; and personalized guest menus.
“If you don’t have perfect time management, you might end up cleaning up all day long,” Jono advises.
He reimagined some Caribbean dishes on Charter, but they did not appear on the show. below deck mediterranean styleGuest posted a video of his ossobuco oxtail and polenta on his Instagram page. “We want to see a higher level of Caribbean cuisine on an international stage,” he said.People flock to small Caribbean restaurants in New York and London to order the classic Caribbean food we love. he said, remembering what he was doing.
“There are restaurants in St. Barts and the Bahamas opened by Michelin chefs,” he continues. “I would love it if most of the small islands in the Caribbean had a Michelin restaurant that would attract people from all over the world.I would love to become a Michelin chef and be my own chef.”
He hopes Caribbean cuisine will one day become as famous as Indian, Italian or Asian cuisine, and that more people will travel to experience it, beyond food festivals. .
“In my job, we have to eat Japanese food for lunch and Indian food for dinner. The next day we have a Thai lunch and a tapas Spanish dinner. So I have become familiar with many cuisines. ” he says. He hopes to see Caribbean cuisine similarly established on international menus.
“When I was younger, I always wanted to escape from the Caribbean. Now that I’m an adult, I realize that my heart is inextricably tied to it. It’s so nostalgic and wonderful,” he admits.
There is no doubt that the Dominican people and the entire Caribbean are proud of the influence he and other Caribbean chefs have had on various series. For example, Jamaican chef Adrian Forte has appeared on several Food Network shows, including: Top Chef, Chopped Canadaand Netflix edge restaurant. And classically trained chef Dominic Taylor (of Jamaican and St Lucian descent) brings the warmth of the Caribbean to Channel 4. five star kitchen He became an outstanding chef in Britain and was named Britain’s Next Great Chef.
Food is a translator of culture, telling stories across borders, regardless of socio-economic background. and while we live nylon Dubbed the “New Golden Age of Reality TV,” there’s no shortage of food shows on the menu. As we celebrate these Caribbean culinary ambassadors, it’s always fun to see world-class chefs prove themselves in culinary challenges and competitive competitions at these international programs. Bravo!
