The HBCU Creative Cohort was left awed after being influenced and inspired by restaurant owner Chef Jay John. Chef Jay John owns the successful and delicious restaurant Dat Fire Jerk Chicken. Family-oriented, inspirational, and a great cook he started in 2015, following in his father’s footsteps. In 1973 his father owned his own Jamaican restaurant in the city of Los Angeles, California. Making good food is in his blood. Coming from a Jamaican household most of his time was spent in the kitchen. His grandmother who is 103 years old has always been a great cook, and he even stated that he sometimes calls her for her guidance with his cooking.
Chef Jay John wasn’t always a chef. However, everything he has experienced in his life has helped shape him into being a great businessman and entrepreneur. After graduating from the illustrious Clark Atlanta University in the year 1998, he became a real estate agent and was working retail throughout college. Chef Jay stated that real estate will always have a place in his heart as he was very great at it. Jay explained to the podcast that his past endeavors seriously helped him when running his business. For instance, although the courses he took at Clark Atlanta University did not relate to cooking they weren’t for nothing, everything aligned in place with his entrepreneurship.
We asked Chef Jay John, “What made you start the restaurant when that wasn’t your original plan?” Jay explained to us even though it wasn’t his original plan he decided to take a risk and “bet on himself”. After seeing a building on craigslist by his alma mater Clark Atlanta, he knew this was what he wanted to do. It wasn’t all peaches and cream though starting out. Jay emphasized that entrepreneurship is extremely hard and he wants individuals to understand that. He didn’t automatically have customers lined up at his establishment, he had to work hard at networking himself. He told us that he even had to go door to door offering his food to people. Starting out he was spending more money than he was earning and it even took him 2 years to perfect his jerk sauce. But with his drive and determination he came out on top, his restaurant is now booming and let me tell you that jerk chicken is indeed fire.
Chef Jay left us off by saying he never wants us to forget the fundamentals. What we are being taught and doing in our lives right now mean something for our future. Networking, following successful people, learning credit are all important things that will be essential to us. He told us not to be afraid of taking that risk and betting on ourselves.
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