In the bustling world of culinary arts, flavors dance on plates and creativity has no bounds.
Brandon Bridges, a previously incarcerated New Jersey resident, stands as a testament to the belief that food is indeed art.
With over 13 years of experience in the kitchen, Bridges’s culinary journey has been diverse and flavorful as the dishes he creates.
“I’ve been cooking for over 13 years, but I never had a certification,” he said.
His culinary education was unconventional, shaped by his experiences working in various restaurants and learning on the go. “Anything that I’ve learned in the kitchen was just from going to different restaurants,” he explains, reflecting on his journey of “faking it till you make it.”
Before the Monmouth County Vocational School District Second Chance Culinary Program, Bridges lived in church homes with his family and spent most of his childhood watching his grandmother working in the kitchen.
“My grandmother is like the main reason behind me cooking because I just loved being in the kitchen when my grandmother was cooking,” Bridges said.
Bridges watched his grandmother cook meals everyday, not realizing his grandmother watched him too. The next day, his grandmother told Bridges to make the meal he watched her cook the day before. In his world, he has always had to freelance, to just make something he would like to eat.
With a love for cooking, Bridges took the opportunity of Second Chance, to refine his culinary skills and learn more about creating meals.
The program taught Bridges how to follow recipes, how to make a soup from scratch and the right way to make his grandmother’s spaghetti sauce.
While attending class every week, Bridges learned he does not like the standard recipe, “Food is like art, you just add your own twist to it.”
The kitchen to the ordinary person is just a place to put together meals, but for those looking from a different perspective, it is a canvas where one can express themselves through ingenuity and uniqueness.
Chefs and artists just follow things that have already been done, but to make it their own, they all have something distinctive they use.
Having head chefs direct Bridges to follow every step and ingredient in a recipe for a meal, he’s adapted to learn how to put his own twist on a common plate, to give an ordinary meal his own flair.
“Don’t be afraid to add your own twist to it. You might say add a little pepper, salt, and garlic. You can throw a little something or some spices in there,” Bridges said.
Beyond the confines of the kitchen, Bridges creativity extends to the world of fashion, using the patience and skills from the kitchen. He crafts unique designs,“I customize clothes.”
From New York Fashion Week to the streets of Venice Beach and back into a kitchen, Bridges’s creativity shines through everything he does.
Amidst his rising success, Bridges remains grounded, recognizing the importance of giving back and supporting others on their journey. “I remember times where I didn’t have this, so I’m always trying to give back to some of that,” he says, reflecting on his past struggles of homelessness and substance abuse and the lessons they taught him.
While designing clothes and taking part in Second Chance, Bridges has helped the community around him. Seeing the homeless population in Venice Beach, reminding him of his life, he went around giving out the clothes he made. Currently Bridges takes part in a nonprofit organization in Asbury Park, N.J. named Em-Power Me, where he receives help, Bridges also is a part of the volunteer group working.
As he continues to evolve and grow, Bridges’s journey exemplifies the power of passion, perseverance, and creativity. Through his artistry in the kitchen and beyond, he reminds us that food is not just sustenance—it’s a form of expression, a celebration of life and a work of art.
