Chef Andrew Black on the journey from his grandmother’s kitchen in Jamaica, to the Ritz in Paris, to winning a James Beard award in Oklahoma City

Chef Andrew Black on the journey from his grandmother’s kitchen in Jamaica, to the Ritz in Paris, to winning a James Beard award in Oklahoma City

From Culinary Characters Unlocked by Culinary Characters Unlocked

July 21, 2026 · 36 min

About this episode

Chef Andrew Black shares his culinary journey from Jamaica to winning a James Beard award in Oklahoma City.

Chef Andrew Black got his first cooking job in his native Jamaica in his teens. That began a stellar career that took him to the Ritz in Paris and the Peabody in Memphis. When he was offered a job in Oklahoma City he sneered, “Where the hell is that?” But he checked it out, liked what he found, and has been at the forefront of a culinary revolution there. Chef Black now owns three restaurants in OKC, including the celebrated Grey Sweater, which he says is built on imagination to take diners on a journey of memorable moments, and where he won the 2023 James Beard award as Best Chef Southwest. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

People in this episode

Guest: Chef Andrew Black

Topics covered

Keywords

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: James Beard, Grey Sweater, Peabody

Places: Jamaica, Ritz in Paris, Oklahoma City

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