Atlanta’s first Black-woman-owned culinary academy opens in DeKalb County

Photo by Kerri Phox/.The Atlanta VoiceThe first Black-woman-owned culinary academy in the Southeast has opened in DeKalb County. Located at 1927 Lakeside Parkway in Tucker, the Culinary and Hospitality Enthusiast of the Future Academy (C.H.E.F.) celebrated its grand opening on Thursday and has grown from a summer community program into an incubator and education space to help build the hospitality careers of young people and entrepreneurs.& Founded by chef Simone Byron and hospitality leader and business owner Adeola Sokunbi, the C.H.E.F Academy is an extension of the nonprofit organization Navigate Foundation, which Byron founded in 2017. Navigate is a hospitality workforce development initiative that aims to empower youth from underrepresented communities to become the next generation of chefs. Since its inception, 200 students have graduated from the program.& They hope to replicate much of the essence of Navigate Foundation in the C.H.E.F Academy. But while a big focus is ushering young adults into the hospitality industry, the C.H.E.F Academy also hopes to reach people of all ages and backgrounds, from those who want to take a mixology class to creatives looking for filming locations.& But the root of it all: curating classes that foster community& “We have people that are...