His mom had him when she was 14 years old, raised him as a single parent while still completing high school, and college. As a young child, he spent a lot of time at home alone and often times had very little food to eat. Because of this, he started cooking for himself when he was 7 years old and really fell in love with cooking at the age of 8. Growing up he watched a lot of TV shows and taught himself as much as he could. At 14, he began classically training to be a chef. By the time he was 16, he had begun to compete in state and nationwide competitions.
At age 18, he took his education further with cooking and went to Johnson County Community College for the Chef Apprenticeship program, pursuing a degree in Culinary Arts and Associates in Applied Science. During all of this, he apprenticed for 2 years at a local restaurant, Sundry Market & Kitchen, as Head Caterer while hosting dinner events, teaching classes, commercial propaganda, and creating daily specials.
At age of 22, he became Executive Chef at Ruby Jean’s Kitchen & Juicery located here in Kansas City, MO, where he created their first menu. He now owns his own business as creative personal/private chef for many athletes, celebrities, local clientele, and anyone who wants the experience of a private chef in their home. Some of the celebrities include Floyd Mayweather, DC Young Fly, Sammy Watkins(NFL), Tyler Florence, Draya Michele, and a few others. He has a huge heart for his community and really enjoys empowering the next generation to go after what their heart wants! His vision being a private chef is to impact and inspire kids to become who they want to be.
Private Chef Jayaun Smith is known for his ability to put an urban touch on your favorite classic dishes!
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