Meet Mondrekio Drake” Robertson | Personal Chef / Contract Chef “

We had the good fortune of connecting with Mondrekio “Drake” Robertson and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Mondrekio “Drake”, we’d love to hear more about how you thought about starting your own business?
The thought process behind starting my business was really just having the freedom to do what I wanted. In my mind it was going to be super easy and I just do what I want all day and that would be it. Little did I know all the work that comes with owning your own business and being your own boss. Being a chef you really have to be careful where you work because sometimes you never get to really be creative and cook or create what you want. With starting my own business that was the goal and that is the most rewarding part. I get to really create and put my heart on each plate and also work with clients who want to have an experience that is unique as well.

What should our readers know about your business?
I think what sets me apart from others my passion for our industry as a whole. I love what I do, I love being a chef and I wholeheartedly think it is one of the most fulfilling careers someone can hope to have. I get to change people’s mood and get the chance to make memories with people daily with something I created. Right now I’m most excited about so many things, lol. You can ask my sister I am the person who thinks we should celebrate every win, because you never know how hard someone worked to achieve that win. Next up I am working on my fourth and maybe final season of my podcast “Cooking Your Way Through Life” and also something really special to go along with it. Today that is what excites me the most, and it is definitely keeping me on my toes.

I got to where I am with hard work and consistency, also a little luck and timing. There are so many talented chefs out there and I think if all you had to do was be a good cook, everyone would be at the top of their game. I learned very quickly that you need more than great food to go far in this industry. Doing TV (America’s Test Kitchen) taught me how to convey what I wanted to people and that helps me when I am doing personal chef work because you are also entertaining the entire time. I pull from all the jobs I’ve had in the past when cooking for clients because the experience is what I bring to the table. Being a yacht chef and working as a contract chef also allows me to travel which is one of my favorite things to do. Ultimately I want people to know that when they hire me I’m bringing years of passion and creating a specialized menu just for them.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
Ok so my friends will tell you that I am normally the best tour guide, except in places that I live lol. So if you know me then you know I’m a self proclaimed nerd, and that means our first stop is the museum lol. We would start the week off with the High Museum of Art, one of my favorite spots and then grab food at STK Steakhouse because I like their lunch over dinner. We would finish that day by hitting the Botanical Gardens and grabbing some J.R. Crickets (the one off Juniper st) for some wings at dinner time. After that later on we would hit all the big spots I feel makes the city for me. World of Coke, Aquarium, Atlantic Station, Centennial Park, Martin Luther King National Site, and Cascade Skating to round out the week. Food wise I have to take them to the Varsity for nostalgia, and then we would have to hit The Optimist, Poor Calvin’s, Atlanta Fish Market, The Capital Grille, Tin Lizzy’s, Logo de Chao, Fox Bros. Bar-B-Q, and for good measure we would get a chicken tender sub from Publix. Hanging out wise we would have to hit at least two Hookah bars as well, to round out the trip. I think outside of all of this if we have time we spend the last two days down in Savanah and hit up Alligator Soul.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I would like to give a Shoutout to my mom, Debra Baldwin. Honestly speaking I have amazing friends in my corner who push me and make sure I don’t forget who I am. I also had an awesome culinary instructor (Chef Bill Lipscomb) who made me realize that the sky is the limit on where I could go as a professional chef. None of those things would matter if my mom didn’t believe in me from the start. Thanks to her I never felt like there was a ceiling, or that because we grew up super humble I couldn’t change my circumstances. I also give her full credit for my work ethic, I think that is something I’m super proud of and she really instilled in me. Without Debra there would be no Chef Hollywood that you see and know today.

Website: chculinarycreations.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chefhollywood88/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chculinarycreations/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/ChefHollywood88

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/chefhollywood88

Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/chef-hollywoods-culinary-creations-atlanta?osq=chef+hollywoods+culinary+creations

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCQywIe__jajrNDb_Prqfhgg

Other: https://chefhollywood88.onuniverse.com https://cookingyourwaythroughlife.buzzsprout.com https://www.tiktok.com/@chefhollywood88?lang=en