Chef Jeff Henderson is an executive chef, an author, an upcoming TV host, the basis of a new Will Smith movie – and an ex-offender.
He was recently invited by the U.S. Probation Office for the Eastern District of Missouri to speak to a group of adult and juvenile offenders. His message: Life is about choices.
“Today is not about Chef Jeff, it’s about you guys,” Henderson told the group, made up of mainly black boys.
On one level, he has a lot in common with many of the boys who sat before him: he came from a broken home in an inner-city neighborhood with few opportunities.
His father left when he was 2, and his mother worked multiple jobs to care for him and his sister. Lacking positive role models, Henderson said he spent his early years stealing cars, dealing drugs and hustling to make money for material things.
“So we’re doing time for (expletive) tennis shoes and gold chains,” he told them.
By the time he was 21, he became one of the top cocaine dealers in San Diego, making up to $35,000 a week.
His high-stakes lifestyle lasted for five years before it landed him 10 years in prison for drug trafficking. He was no longer a high roller, but inmate #16138-198.
“I read my first book when I was locked up,” Henderson told them. “When I got locked up, I couldn’t even write a letter.”
He warned the children that they could face the same fate unless they choose a better path.
“You’re lucky to get caught early,” he said.
But his incarceration served as a catalyst for change. He started a different hustle: cooking, first as a dishwasher in a prison kitchen. Henderson, 44, is now considered one of the finest chefs in the world.
He told them the secret to getting out of poverty was to blend into the workforce. He re-imaged himself for corporate America – changing the way he walked, talked, dressed and presented himself.
“Education and knowledge is paper,” Henderson said. “This look I got now, I get paid.”
In 2001, he made history in Las Vegas when he became the first African American named “Chef de Cuisine” at Caesar’s Palace. He eventually became an executive chef at Café Bellagio, where has worked since 2004.
His first book, Cooked: From the Streets to the Stove, from Cocaine to Foie Gras, was a bestseller, helped by his appearance on the Oprah Winfrey Show.
He caught the attention of Will Smith, who became interested in a movie based on Henderson’s life and paid him $1.2 million for the rights.
Now he wants to give back. One way is through his TV reality show on the Food Network called The Chef Jeff Project. Henderson takes six at-risk young adults and commits to turning their lives around by putting them to work in his Los Angeles-based catering company, Posh Urban Cuisine.
“Everybody deserves to live the American Dream,” he said.
Doug Burris, chief federal probation officer at the Eastern District Office in St. Louis, arranged the visit and said he hopes that Henderson’s story will propel the youngsters to turn their lives around before it’s too late.
“Our hope is that this will result in them not making it to the federal court,” Burris said.
It seems that Henderson’s story touched at least one teen, Willie Love.
“It inspired me a lot to do what I can to make a way for myself,” said Love, 15. That way, he said starts with staying in school and being respectful.
The Chef Jeff Project on the Food Network premieres Oct. 12 at 9 p.m. central time. The movie about his life, starring Will Smith, is scheduled to be released in Dec. 2009.
For more on Chef Jeff, visit www.chefjeffcooked.com.
