Right before the pandemic, Alabama native, Ben Oakley decided to move to Orlando.
What made you get into the culinary industry? What age were you? How did it start?
When I turned 14, I got my workers permit and got a job in fast food at the mall. It was either that or work at the water slide.
Did you have any culinary schooling/training? How did you learn?
No, I didn’t go to culinary school. I’m self taught from working in a lot of different restaurants. I was always experimenting with food in the back of house. To this day I think it was cameras in those kitchens because some of those items popped up on the menu lol Other than that, I took cooking classes online & read every cookbook I could get my hands on.
Tell me how it was learning the business side of things?
It was hard in the moment, but looking back at it I was blessed the way it happened. My first client gave me the space to learn in real time. One of the biggest things I learned was to always deliver on your promise.
Tell me about your brands. Your website kickinflavor.com, your food truck Grits At Nite, etc..
Kickin Flavor was a YouTube show that happened on accident. None of my friends knew I could cook until I randomly made a meal one day. From there we started throwing kick backs and recorded them! We put episodes out & began hosting dinner parties. Today, Kickin Flavor is the company that house all of my culinary brands.
Grits At Nite is my food truck and we have the best grits in the world! The most common thing I was booked for as a private chef was to do brunches so I kept it going with the food truck! People never expect the flavor that hits them when they try my grits for the first time. My most popular item is the Cajun shrimp and grits!
Tell me about the process of getting your cookbook, A Sweet Lick done. What did you enjoy the most about the process? What inspired it? Do you think there will be a follow up?
The cookbook was the hardest thing I’ve done because I never measured anything when I cooked. Going through that process made it a lot easier when it came time to develop the recipes for my food truck. I enjoy food styling & food photography so being able bring some of my family recipes to life that way was enjoyable. I made it a dessert book because my French toast cake is what got me hired as a private chef, the recipe for it is in the book. I’m currently working on my next cookbook, it’s going to be healthy meals. I’ve lost over 60 pounds in the last 3 1/2 months and I want to share what I’ve been eating to do it!
What is something that you’d like all of your clients and supporters to know?
Thank you for making my dreams a reality. It’s impossible to do this without y’all!
What has been the highlight of your career so far?
It’s several. I’m still amazed that I get to do this everyday. I had had a couple care packs land at the Joe Budden Podcast and they approved! That was major for me because I respect their music opinions and they are some serious foodies!
To checkout more from Chef Ben, including purchasing his cookbook, click here.
The Hip-Hop Foodie 