About Me
Chef Tageré Southwell began her culinary career as a small child cooking with her grandmother, a master baker from the Caribbean island of Antigua, baking bread and making chocolate cakes in her Holly Hobby oven. She began to take cooking more seriously while studying at Syracuse University getting a Bachelor of Science in Retailing & Fashion Business and hosting barbeques at her campus apartment for fellow students. She created elaborate spreads of food, while charging admission to pay for college expenses. She quickly graduated and transitioned into the music business working for Arista Records running the Video Promotions Department. While at Arista she began baking and selling her famous Sugar Cookie Crust Sweet & Sour Apple Pies. Not realizing her innate passion for cooking as yet, she continued to work in the corporate arena, moving onto Project Management for Nettmedia, one of the then top web development firms for the music industry. Upon leaving Nettmedia she decided to go to the Institute of Culinary Education in New York City taking on the Culinary Certificate Program. Chef Tageré finally found her niche, graduating with Highest Honors and gaining acceptance into Chanterelle’s externship program, one of the premiere French restaurants in the U.S., where she received Highest Honors as well. After completing culinary school she was then accepted into the 2003 Culinary Team for the Cannes Film Festival in Cannes, France where she had an epiphanal moment when she was chosen to work with the world famous Master Chef, Chef Roger Vergé of Le Moulin de Mougins for the AMFAR AIDS Benefit dinner serving 500 dinners in a matter of minutes with his amazing culinary staff. She knew this was what she was truly born to do-create cuisine utilizing food and flavors from around the world. From there she has gone on to private chef work in East Hampton, Greenwich & New York City, working as a freelance chef with Sara Moulton, the Executive Chef, at Gourmet Magazine and former Food Network star, creating 4 course meals for advertisers for the past 5 years. She is a Food Stylist for Woman’s World Magazine and Sara Moulton’s recent Best Buy webisode series. Chef Tageré continues to create private dinner parties, exclusive one-on-one cooking classes, cooking parties for adults and children. Currently, she is working as the Executive Chef for the GE Monogram Design Center in the Architecture & Design Building in New York City overseeing cooking demonstrations, wine events, cocktail and dinner parties, as well as cooking class dinner parties for upscale clientele.