Ajbeer Singh – Indian Gravy Chef, Tamarind Restaurant

As a young boy living in North India, Ajbeer Singh’s uncles told him securing employment as a cook was a path to a better life out of his small village. And the fact that his three uncles were themselves good cooks, as was his mother, further stoked Ajbeer’s interest in the food industry. He followed their familial advice and moved from his rural home in Uttar Khand, when he was a teenager, to the metropolis of Dehli to take up a position as a trainee chef at Tandoor (Clay Oven). He worked there for six years where he improved his craft, until an opportunity presented itself for him to relocate to Jamaica. Visiting restaurateur Vivek Chatani (from Jamaica) was scouting for chefs for his new eatery Tamarind, located on Barbican Road, Kingston. Ajbeer was one of five chefs selected to take up a two-year contract to work in Jamaica, and he journeyed here last year. “The higher pay scale, exposure and opportunity,” he said were enticements to leave the populous country where Indian restaurants are a dime a dozen. He told Thursday Food, with the aid of a translator and his boss Pooja Chatani, that he’s felt a sense of home living in Jamaica. “The mountains remind me of the village I’m from,” he informed. Ajbeer also has great admiration for his Jamaican co-workers, especially their cleanliness and friendly nature. At Tamarind, a Jamaica Observer Food Awards nominee last year for Best Lunch Spot, 25-year-old Ajbeer works as a gravy chef and also oversees the preparation of appetisers and breads. His boss Pooja heaps praise on Ajbeer’s work ethic, noting that “he’s very dedicated and even sometimes too particular in the way he goes about his dishes; he is so exacting in creating authentic meals… he wants it done in his precise manner.” The chef, who has a fiancée Kasum back home, shares that his leisure time is spent researching new recipes on the Internet, watching cricket and listening to Hindi music.

Glenmore Lynch – Prep Chef, From Thought to Finish Caterers

Tall, mature and polite, Glenmore Lynch extends a hand to greet us when we meet him in the kitchen of the Jamaica Conference Centre-located restaurant — From Yardstyle to Gourmet — where he works as a prep chef. Glenmore to our surprise, happened upon the culinary field when he migrated with his wife Tatlyn and their five children (now adults) to Canada in 1991. Before leaving Jamaica, he was a sales representative employed to T Geddes Grant. In Canada, the emigrant applied and landed a job with Mr Jerk, a food franchise specialising in Jamaican meals. It was there, under the supervision of the restaurant’s owner, Kenny Se Fah, that Glenmore got into the food biz. Twenty years later, he’s still in the industry, having earned valuable training and knowledge through a series of job stints. He checks off Big Daddy’s in Spanish Town and Kingston-based eateries Chung’s Catering and Hot Pot as some of the places he’s worked. In his present position, where he pulls double duty for the restaurant as well as catering company From Thought to Finish, both owned by renowned cooking sibs Jacqui and Janice Tyson, Glenmore explains that his main responsibility is quality control. “I ensure that we put out the finest product so I check the quality of the meat, make sure it’s properly refrigerated, properly seasoned and dispatched to the cook line,” he said. The 55-year-old chef has found much delight working with Jacqui Tyson, and relays his gratitude for her “encouraging me to stick with the catering service”. She’s also laid the seeds of support and advised Glenmore to attain certification from local culinary institutions.

Garcia Brown – First Cook, Palmyra Resort and Spa

Regardless Garcia Brown having worked at the Palmyra Resort and Spa in Montego Bay for only a short while, he’s made quite the impression on his superiors. Garcia’s boss, executive chef Scott Simpson is effusive in his praise for his employee.

“He has a tremendous passion for food and cooking… he obviously enjoys the process of selecting foods, preparing meals and creating menus,” Simpson raves to Thursday Food. Simpson adds that Brown’s “paying close attention to detail and being such a fast learner” also endeared him to the young man who works as a first cook in the kitchen of the well-regarded property. The raves for 27-year-old Garcia seem justified as he demonstrates a keen interest in upward mobility. Having already attained Level 1 and Level 2 certification from Runaway HEART Hotel and Training Institution, Garcia informed that he is presently pursuing Level 3 training at the Culinary Institute of America to be certified as an executive chef. “I really enjoy entertaining persons and satisfying people’s taste buds,” he explains of his affinity for the culinary arts.