MEET THE CHEF!

Andeshia “Chef Catore” Grant is the Owner of “Taste of Catore, LLC”. Born in Queens, NY, and raised between Brooklyn, NY and parts of North Carolina; she attributes her strength and success where she currently is in life, to the twists and turns endured as a foster child from the age of 5 to 21. Chef Catore actually ended up working for over 10 years in the confines of social work and even for the agency she was in care with. She expresses wanting to be a super social worker; showing youths that there is life outside of care that can be lived happily.

Chef Catore is not only a Certified Nutritional Coach but also has obtained both her Serve Safe and NYS Food handler license, and in 2022 became Kosher certified. An honorable MWBE and member of Women Chef Restaurateurs (WCR) and DOE Certified, she truly enjoys working with all populations and cultures, as she feels every new venture broadens her capabilities in and out the kitchen. When asked what her specialty is, she just states, “ I make it all, because my clients come from all walks of life and love diversity in food . My clients enjoy eating everything, so I have to be able to meet their needs”.

Chef Catore further dives into how she started her journey in the culinary world: “When I was around the age of 19/20, I went for a check-up and found out that I had stage 3 ovarian cancer.  After a few incisions, treatment, and minor surgeries, the cancer went away, or so I thought. Eventually, life went back to normal after my recovery time was over. I graduated college with a Bachelor’s in Social work and from 2006-2017, I worked for the agency I was actually in foster care with. I flourished in my roles within the social services sectors. I worked in a group home and always had access to cooking for the youth. I won’t say I was where I am now but it definitely was my happy space and I always wanted to handle the meals for the youths and staff.”

In 2014/2015, I took a career change and decided to work within a health home sector of social services to which I worked countless days into nights. This must have taken a serious toll on my body as the cancer returned and I worked myself into exhaustion with high levels of stress. I went to work one day and after a few dizzy spells, I passed out. Within days, I lost feeling on my right side and my body stopped functioning normally. I had a condition called Idiopathic intracranial hypertension with a small cyst like tumor. This is also called: pseudotumor cerebri; which shut all the major nerves down in my body. This had been brewing inside of me and over time turned into a small benign tumor in my head. Two big surgeries and one smaller one, and lots of rest and phsyical theraphy, my motor skills started to get back to normal and I decided I had to make some serious overall life changes.

After Chef Catore, recovered, she decided to never be expendable to being fired from a company again or let go because of a health condition. Her passion to be in the kitchen grew internally, and in 2017 she popped into a course, unsure if she would have a seat, and graduated from a business entrepreneurship course with Operation Hope. To solidify her dreams in the culinary world, later on in 2017, Chef Catore applied for the International Culinary center, in NYC to which she graduated with her degree in Professional Culinary Arts.

While still in culinary school though, Chef Catore dove right into the scene where she worked for two Michelin star restaurants and the US open and then Barclays center. Within 6 months at the Barclays, two NBA players picked her up for a private in house chef role. “It was my first experience entering private chef life” From there, she has worked for nonprofits, for-profits, political events, family, friends, and many celebrity clients (i.e Tyler Perry studios, Kevin hart foundation, TRY HUNGRY, Robert Glasper, Keyon Harrold, Taurean Prince, Elijah Hughes, Ayanis, Caris Levert, Neyo, Loaded Lux, Sean Ringgold, Devale and Khadeen Ellis and French Montana… just to name a few). Chef Catore has also competed on Food Network’s #Chopped (Season 51) and Food Network’s #KitchenCrash (Season 2) and FoodNetwork Canada/Cooking Channel’s “Fire Masters” (airing in 2023) She has also been featured in Madam Niore, ATL Voyage, Sapphire Magazine and highlighted in a commercial for Ford motors as a Maverick in the NYC Catering scene.

“I took my unfortunate condition and turned it into a passionate and lucrative lifestyle. I never knew that pain could actually turn into passion. Now I do, as I’m a living testimony to it”.