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Ze'Shieca Brown Carter is a local celebrity and award winning chef. She is known for her groundbreaking efforts against the cycle of unemployment and poverty with her Food Technician training program. This training enables her graduates to step straight into jobs that offers a path forward into stability and opportunity. From a "Chef to Schools" volunteer to a daily commercial food columnist, an Escoffier Culinary Arts graduate and eventually Kitch'n Lyfe Skills’ Founder and Executive Director, Ze’Carter has come a long way.
Beyond her achievements, Ze’Carter is also a speaker at the first-ever Ted-X Talk in Eustis and an Inductee in the Inaugural Lake County School’s Hall of Fame. A wife and mother of two, she is also the proud owner and operator of The Kitchen Cooking School with her daughter, who is also a chef. The Kitchen Cooking School is a consumer-friendly cooking school and personal chef service.
When the mother-daughter team is not busy in private homes or teaching cooking classes, ZeÇarter is busy being the Executive Director and Founder of Kitch'n Lyfe Skills, a non-profit organization. Their mission is to reduce the occurrences of food insecurity among schooling children, the elderly, and youth who have aged out of foster homes - through education, enlightenment, and empowerment.
The organization seeks to further its mission through basic cooking classes, a professional culinary education course that helps individuals obtain viable positions in the food industry and encourages sustainability practices.
Q: What is the biggest challenge you have met in your career?
Chef Ze' Carter: The biggest challenge that I have faced during my career is overcoming negative stereotypes. It is so cliché because when people recognize that I am a chef, they immediately ask me about frying chicken. Sure, I love a nice piece of fried chicken, but honestly, I haven't fried chicken in years. I am so much more than that. I am often initially overlooked for certain cooking projects until they see my resume or see similar projects I have worked on.
Q: How you would describe your company culture, and what are the superpowers of your team?
Chef Ze' Carter: The culture of my company is personal service at its best, and what fits your personal needs. We are personal chefs first, then educators.
I believe the superpowers of my team are that as an African-American women-owned company, we have a unique perspective when it comes to hospitality. I grew up in the South and have learned how to express the Southern charm. But this is not always expressed when it comes to the workplace, there’s a thin line when it comes to that, and my daughter (Chef Joy) has mastered it.
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Q: What are some challenges or trends you see in hiring today?
Chef Ze' Carter: Some of the challenges that we face in the hiring process is that potential employees want to start where they finish. Meaning, they want to walk into the kitchen and immediately stand behind the stove and serve dishes.
While there are plenty of people who could easily manage this, it is vital to work your way up the kitchen brigade. Doing this creates a climate of respect for all positions in the foodservice industry, and I feel that a clear understanding of what goes on in the kitchen makes you a better chef. Believe me, a shift as a dishwasher in any kitchen will definitely give you a different outlook on how vital every person is in the kitchen. Sure "Chef de Cuisine" (head chef) is an obtainable goal but it is one that we all must work towards, so my challenge is helping new hires realize the true culture of the kitchen, and that teamwork is vital to survival.
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Q: Who inspires you and why?
Chef Ze' Carter: My late father was and still is my inspiration. He was a chef and a giver. He was also a calm man and stayed pretty laid back even in the most challenging situations. A big giver, his motto was that God was going to hold us personally responsible for how we treat people no matter how they treated us, and that is truly sage advice.
Q: How would you describe your leadership style?
Chef Ze' Carter: My leadership style is tough love with a splash of passion. I know that many times I am too hard on my culinary students, but I haven't had one yet tell me that I was too hard.
I am a bit more relaxed with my consumer-friendly students because I realize that cooking is a life skill that many people didn't obtain as children and I don't want to turn them off when it comes to cooking. I am a team player and a firm believer that the acronym Together Everyone Accomplishes More is crucial and key to life.
Q: Have you ever had an hourly job? If yes, please share with us your experience.
Chef Ze' Carter: Oh Yes, I’ve had plenty of hourly jobs. I started working when I was 12, assisting my godmother with Wednesday night dinner at church. Each job that I had after really prepared me for the next job and in my last hourly job, I was actually promoted to an annual salary. That whole experience taught me that I never wanted to work for anyone again in that capacity.
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