Memories associated with food and cooking go back to Chef Brandy’s childhood, growing up in the small town of Roxboro, North Carolina. She vividly remembers some of her earliest “culinary jobs” being cooking with her mother in the family kitchen. In the south, sweet tea is not just a beverage, but a cornerstone of southern culture. Given sweet tea’s importance to a southern way of life, Chef Brandy remembers feeling the sense of responsibility of stirring the sugar into the sweet tea. Chef Brandy recalls other fond memories of cooking in her family home; “punching” the cabbage for slaw, being “in charge” of mixing cake batter (which of course included licking batter from the beaters when the mixing was compete), and being the official taste tester whenever her father was grilling. To Chef Brandy, these early memories helped mold her food philosophy. Food should be fresh, high quality and local whenever possible. And when preparing food for others, great care should go into the preparation, as well as the importance of food in creating joyful memories.
Like many teens just graduating from high school, Chef Brandy wasn’t quite sure what she wanted to do as a career. Growing up with a father who owned his own business, what she did know was that someday she wanted to be her own boss. With this in mind, Chef Brandy enrolled at North Carolina State University majoring in Business Management. It wasn’t until a chance encounter during her senior year that Chef Brandy finally discovered what business path she wanted to follow. She recalls striking up a casual conversation with a fellow student, in a 200-seat lecture hall. Her classmate shared that he had recently graduated from culinary school and was now pursuing a business degree with the hope of opening his own restaurant someday. With her interested piqued, Chef Brandy asked him to tell her more about his experience at culinary school. This conversation was the spark that lit a flame inside Chef Brandy. After graduating with her degree in Business Management, Chef Brandy embarked her culinary training at the Le Cordon Bleu School of Culinary Arts in Orlando, Florida.
In the fall of 2005, Chef Brandy began an internship at the Sapphire Grill in Savannah, Georgia. At the conclusion of her internship, Chef Brandy accepted a full-time position with the Sapphire Grill and began her culinary career in the Hostess City. Over the next five years, Chef Brandy worked her way from line cook to Executive Sous Chef at the Sapphire Grill. In June of 2010, Chef Brandy was offered and accepted the position of Executive Chef at Local 11ten Food & Wine. At the time, Local 11ten was at the forefront of the farm-to-table movement with a specialization in local ingredients and cuisine. This philosophy resonated strongly with Chef Brandy’s childhood food experiences. Early on Saturday mornings she could be found at the farmers market in Forsyth Park seeking out the freshest local ingredients to be served at the table that evening. In 2013, Daniel Reed Hospitality (DRH) was formed as the parent company of Local 11ten and Chef Brandy called on both her business and culinary training to spearhead the opening of the Public Kitchen & Bar in the historic district of Savannah. The following year, Chef Brandy oversaw the acquisition of Soho South Café and began splitting her time between all three restaurants. In 2018, Chef Brandy once again found herself overseeing the opening of another new establishment, this time the Agency Socialthèque in Atlanta, Georgia. During her final two years with DRH, Chef Brandy managed all four restaurants, from staffing to menu development, further splitting her time between the 3 restaurants in Savannah and periodic trips to Atlanta. The summer of 2018 brought a momentous change to Chef Brandy’s life with the birth of her daughter. In the fall of 2019, after much deliberation, Chef Brandy made the decision to leave the restaurant industry and establish her own personal chef business in order spend more time with her family.
While Chef Brandy is classically trained, she has never forgotten her southern roots. She will tell you that the aroma of biscuits baking reminds of her grandmother, the smell of chicken being fried in lard makes her think of her mother and how catching a whiff of grilling chicken takes her back to time spent with her father manning the grill outside her family home in Roxboro. Chef Brandy knows the importance of coming together over a meal and how this time shared can not only leave an imprint on your taste buds and in your mind, but also on your soul. Because of this, you can trust that Chef Brandy will put the necessary love and care into your next special event. Whether it is an intimate dinner for 2 or a cocktail party for 200, Chef Brandy wants to help you create meaningful and lasting memories.
