Chef Wendell Price
Tuesday, March 18, 2014
Watermelon Dreams and Chocolate Thoughts
Wendell
Price
2806
Isabella
Houston,
TX 77004
Phone:
(832) 540‐3648
Email:
wendellswbgrill@yahoo.com
WATERMELON
DREAMS AND CHOCOLATE THOUGHTS
A
MEMOIR
Synopsis
by Wendell Price
Watermelon Dreams and Chocolate Thoughts is
a memoir of Chef Wendell Price Jr. It is a bittersweet
and
artistic view of Chef Wendell Price living his dream as a celebrity chef with
passion and doing
things
in his own way. Exposed to fine living at an early age, Wendell pulls himself
up by his boot-straps homes of
Hollywood’s elite where he becomes the chef of choice to over 200 well known
stars in film, TV and entertainment.
From recklessness in his personal life—bad business decisions, the women who brought
him up and tore him down; jail time and tax evasion, the book doesn't leave out
much at all.
It
is a tell all book that brings into the kitchen the coveted recipes he’s
prepared for his celebrity
clientele
and in his signature restaurants. It will make you pause from gathering the
ingredients for some
fabulous meal he’s prepared for one of his clients to hone into what Wendell
regrets not telling and
is sharing now about the lives of the celebs he’s fed and his own personal
journey.
The
watermelon dreams and chocolate thoughts speak to the sweet days of Wendell’s
childhood in
Houston,
Texas. Those days were filled with sweet and spicy aromas of teacakes and
Creole cooking
wafting
from Mama Jennie B’s kitchen. Wendell was also exposed to the sweet smell of
success, growing
up
in a household of a successful father and an eccentric, traveling mother. Large
doses of culture and
style
came from his mother, two gay male housekeepers, family trips to Europe and the
emerging upper
middle
class sect of Houston, Texas.
And
then comes turmoil and drama. The love left his mother and father. Shopping
trips with his sisters
became
fewer and far between. The fighting became more intense with gunshots and
clothes set on fire
as
in the infamous scene from Stella’s Got Her Groove Back. Looking to rid himself of the drama,
Wendell
leaves for the Naval Academy—lying about his age at 17. But he never really
leaves the drama
nor
does drama ever leave him.
Working
as a third mate with some real red necks on a tugboat, Wendell travels to
Central America.
Wendell
takes in more culture and food tips. His travels then take him on to Japan, the
Far East and
Indonesia.
And then his passion for cooking really comes alive. Growing up, Wendell never
tasted the
passion
that went into Mama Jennie B’s or his mother’s cooking anywhere but at home.
But this was
altogether
different. Every dish was an explosion of flavors.
Wendell
lands in Hollywood. Before he knows it, one contact and private party leads to
another. He’s
now
juggling catering assignments for some of the most watched shows of the 1990’s
and private chef
gigs
for Elizabeth Taylor, Larry Flint and OJ Simpson. In the kitchens of Hollywood’s
finest, Wendell gets
an
insider’s look into the sex, drugs and deviance that seemed to go hand and hand
with the lifestyles of
the
rich and famous—or at least in the lives of his most hollow celebrity clients.
After hours, Wendell
earns
his street cred by being shot at and becomes acquainted with original gangster “OG”
Suge Nite.
And,
during business hours, Wendell gets to know backbiting and how to beat the
system really well—
they
all become friends.
Welcome
to trendy Melrose Avenue—Wendell is named Executive Chef at Georgia’s, a fine
dining
concept
owned by Norm Nixon and Denzel Washington. The restaurant quickly becomes a
hotspot with
the
likes of John F. Kennedy, Darryl Hannah, Sharon Stone, Sydney Poitier, Vanessa
Williams and Magic
Johnson.
As quickly as Georgia becomes a scene, it comes to an end.
Wendell
takes on Memphis, Tennessee. But before he lays down roots in Memphis, he
momentarily
parks
his culinary genius and stardom in his hometown of Houston with the opening of
Café Noir with
Olympic
Gold Medalist, Carl Lewis. In Memphis, Wendell expands his repertoire to
include cookbook
author,
cooking show contributor and culinary products. He becomes the local
correspondent for B.
Smith’s Cooking With Style,
otherwise known as the “Black Martha Stewart Show” and lands
appearances
on Food Network. He
becomes the first African American to open an upscale eatery. The
restaurant
regularly receives out‐of‐town of celebs—Tito Jackson, Al Green and Morgan
Freeman.
Wendell
quickly becomes the Delta’s star attraction. Many say that the city (Memphis)
was ready for a
fine
dining concept. But Memphians weren’t ready for Wendell; nor was he ready for
what happens
next.
Before
long Wendell trades his chef’s hat in for a new role—as Inmate #04 38974 at
the Shelby County
Corrections Adult Offender Center. Wendell goes to jail for tax evasion. After having cooked
for over 200
celebrities,
the “Chef To The Stars” meets the biggest star in the universe—God. And he’s
got a lot of
explaining to do.
Monday, March 17, 2014
A COOKBOOK AND MUSIC CD BY CHEF WENDELL PRICE AND SPOKEN WORD ARTIST SE7EN
MY
BABY’S MAMA CAN’T COOK
A
COOKBOOK AND MUSIC CD BY CHEF WENDELL PRICE AND SPOKEN WORD ARTIST SE7EN
Synopsis
by Wendell Price
Celebrity Chef Wendell Price and Spoken
Word Artist Se7en launch the first in their “Menus and Music Series.” My Baby’s Mama Can’t Cook is a beautiful
cookbook, music CD, EBook, and iPhone app for cooking and entertaining. It
establishes mealtime as a time to reconnect and recharge the soul. It is a
collection of stories of single mothers and how they connect with their
families through food—the ups and downs of being a single parent, the lessons
learned, and the culinary creations they've been able to create while
stretching the dollar. The cuisine is New American Comfort food—recipes have
been tested in Chef Price’s kitchen to ensure success and ease of preparation.
The cookbook displays well on the coffee table as page after page features
beautiful portrait photography of women and their families and stunning food
shots. The cookbook engages all of the senses with an accompanying music CD
featuring Spoken Word Artist Se7en. Take the music and the experience with you
by downloading the My Baby’s Mama Can’t Cook EBook and iPhone apps.
About Wendell Price
Welcome to the culinary world of Chef
Wendell—celebrated chef, restaurateur, caterer, author and entrepreneur.
Commonly referred to as “Chef Wendell to the Stars,” Wendell has crafted
innovative menus for the likes of Denzel Washington, Elizabeth Taylor, Lynn
Whitfield, Kevin Costner, Morgan Freeman, Priscilla Presley, Aretha Franklin
and more. Chef Wendell’s multiplatform brand encompasses specialty food
products, interactive cooking classes, WendellWare™-- Chef’s cookware,
housewares, utensils, and kitchen gadgetry, radio and TV.
About Spoken Word Artist Se7en
Welcome to the world of prominent and
prolific Spoken Word Artist, Se7en—poet, emcee, actor, trendsetter,
entrepreneur, leader and educator. Se7en’s groundbreaking spoken word debut was
in 2005 with the release of “Make Me Laugh, Make Me Cry.” Se7en describes his
latest CD, “Power In The World” as “the crowning jewel” in his diverse
repertoire. He’s opened for multiplatform artists, John Legend, Eryka Badu,
Jill Scott, Anthony Hamilton and noted author, lecturer, and activist, Cornel
West. “I didn't choose poetry, it chose
me.” Se7en holds dual undergraduate degrees in Psychology and Sociology and a
Master’s in Counseling from Prairie View A & M University.
Chef Wendell Price
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