A lack of representation in the field of culinary arts spurred two local chefs into action, creating an organization to educate more chefs of color.
Created in 2022 by Chef Vikki Massie and Chef Felicia Grady, the Black Chefs Collective is dedicated to bringing free culinary training to Black and other chefs of color, business owners, home cooks and bakers.
“There are a lot of us that aren’t culinary trained, so some of us need that extra in order to get our business going,” Massie said. “We’re hoping that it flourishes into more of an incubator situation where we can grow.”
Massie said cooking found her by the time she was 29 years old, then she dipped her toes into the hospitality industry, working in restaurants and catering until eventually landing in education. In addition to running her own business, Samora Red Catering, Massie has been teaching college level culinary arts at J Everett Light Career Center for the last 11 years.
Cooking also found Grady — albeit it was after 20 years of marriage ended in divorce. Culinary school ended up being the “something” Grady said she needed to find. A few years working in the public school systems and for Second Helpings led her to starting her own business: Plate it Up Catering.
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“Find the problem, fix it,” Grady said. “We’ve been colleagues for a few years now, and we both were juggling over this idea, so we just decided to collaborate through it together.”
Massie and Grady noticed the lack of Black and other minority chefs in the industry and wanted to find a way to change that. There needed to be a space where other chefs who looked like them could not only come together, but also get the education and training they might be missing, Massie said.
Massie and Grady were both already ServSafe proctors — chefs who abide by the standards and ethics in the ServSafe Examination Administration Handbook — and decided to team up to create the Black Chefs Collective.
“A lot of it came from there’s not a lot of us being represented,” Massie said. “Then when we are represented, we’re kind of misrepresented, so we don’t necessarily stand out, or we’re kind of just kind of shunned off into the corner.”
The collective would aim to be the space they were lacking, to offer training and camaraderie to other chefs in the community. Massie and Grady teach the classes, diving into topics surrounding the culinary industry, from Health Department regulations to menu pricing, plating, knife skills and financial advice.
Black Chefs Collective currently features 32 participants and meets once a month at the East 38th Street branch of the Indianapolis Public Library. Classes that feature cooking take place at The Affinity Group test kitchen. All classes are free, and participants can register on Eventbrite.
Beginning in July, Grady said Black Chefs Collective is introducing a summer workshop series for kids and teens. Grady used to host these workshops as part of ACF but said this is the first time they are being introduced to Black Chef Collective. The first workshop kicks off from 10 a.m. to noon on July 8 at Broadway United Methodist Church and is free.
The next class covers knife skills and plating and takes place from 6-8 p.m. on July 8 at The Affinity Group test kitchen, 8701 Castle Park Dr. For more information, visit facebook.com/profile.php?id=100085270388604 or email blackchefscollective@gmail.com.
Contact Arts & Culture Reporter Chloe McGowan at 317-762-7848. Follow her on X @chloe_mcgowanxx.
