Event | UVA Arts

Chef Antwon Brinson is the owner and founder of Culinary Concepts AB, which opens up opportunities for many who many never been able to access a career in the culinary arts.

Born in the small town of Niagara Falls, New York, Antwon had the good fortune of growing up in a household fueled by pure passion. His mother was a dedicated foster parent who raised over 250 kids and her love and passion-based drive taught him the importance of self-initiative and pursuing one’s dreams. Thanks to a supportive high school cooking instructor, Antwon developed a love for the culinary arts and for the connections that are built in the kitchen.

Antwon pursued a formal education in the culinary arts in 2001 at the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, NY. In 2006, he enrolled in a rigorous three-year apprenticeship program under several Master Chefs at the legendary Greenbrier Resort in West Virginia. During his time there he managed the resort’s 44-acre farm production kitchen and was the first apprentice to ever launch a new restaurant concept at the resort within a year of completing the program.

In the years following his tenure at the Greenbrier, Antwon spent years working at prestigious restaurants like the St. Regis in Kauai, Hawaii and at the Westin in Palm Springs, California. He also spent time traveling and cooking through the British and US Virgin Islands and in eight different countries.

In March of 2018, Antwon founded Culinary Concepts AB to create a mission-based business that empowers people and cultivates individuals’ passions and abilities by teaching life skills through the culinary arts. To date, Culinary Concepts AB has helped over 100 students learn important soft and occupational skills as well as set long-term career goals. Most importantly, Culinary Concepts AB has helped place many of their students into new jobs with their employer partners.

CreativeMornings is a free, monthly breakfast lecture series for the creative community. It happens in 224 cities in 67 countries around the world. Charlottesville is the 180th chapter, and your local hosts are Kori Price, Emma Terry, and Maureen Brondyke. There will be a creative lecture (generally) on the 2nd Friday of each month centered around a global theme picked by CreativeMorning chapters around the world! Stay tuned for updates as we announce the theme and speaker on the first of the month. Registration opens at 10 am the Monday before the event!