Brandon’s Bio

Mr. Brandon Kristopher Dukes, who was born in Cleveland, Ohio and raised in Decatur, Georgia.  He started his food & beverage career as a teenager at a franchise steakhouse in Decatur, Ga. He was a dishwasher, salad prep and finally worked his way up to line cook. While in the position as line cook, Brandon realized he loved to cook. After graduating high school, Mr. Dukes decided to pursue his love for food and the possibility of travel by joining the United States Navy (submariner) as a cook. While in the Navy, Mr. Dukes honed his skills in large batch cookery, recipe adherence and knife skills. Mr. Dukes also won a plethora of awards from Squadron Two and Squadron Eight for being the best submarine cook in the Atlantic Fleet. Before Brandon’s honorable discharge from the United States Navy, he contemplated extending his career in the Navy but at the end of the day he decided to pursue his culinary passions by enrolling at the Culinary Institute of America.

Brandon had a wonderful university experience by immersing himself in everything food and wine. He became the President of the Bringing Culinary Awareness Club. While acting President, the club was heavily involved in the community, by volunteering at the local church soup kitchens and the local orphanage.  Upon leaving the Culinary Institute of America with a Culinary Arts and Hotel & Restaurant Management degree and a B+ average, Mr. Dukes went on to train and learn with Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts.  He quickly made an impact in the food & beverage division with a promotion. Mr. Dukes worked for Four Seasons Scottsdale, AZ and Four Seasons Costa Rica. Mr. Dukes received nominations for Manager of the Quarter numerous times. Brandon continued to live in Costa Rica after leaving Four Seasons and opened his own business which was called Dukes Hospitality Services.

Mr. Dukes decided to return home to Atlanta and re-immerse himself in the restaurant industry. He has continued to manage restaurants in Atlanta like Table 1280 at the Woodruff Arts Center and he was the opening General Manager at Mi Cocina both in Midtown. After a hiatus from day to day restaurant operations, Chef Dukes began his adventure as an educator. Chef Dukes taught at Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts for three years. He won many awards while teaching there and was a student favorite. Chef Dukes taught Foundations One, Contemporary Cuisine, Wine and Beverage, Nutrition and Wine Beverage just to name a few.

Nowadays, Chef Brandon Kristopher Dukes is not only a Chef Instructor at South Gwinnett High School; he is also the owner of FoodieApparel LLC. Chef Dukes uses his Instructor platform to not only provide knowledge to his students but to mentor them and give them an example of what the possibilities are in the food and beverage industry. FoodieApparel provides Chef Dukes with a platform of community involvement. He has partnered with the Atlanta Community Food Bank to help fight hunger. The partnership will allow Chef Dukes and FoodieApparel to give a percentage of each shirt, hat or food item sold to the Atlanta Community Food Bank. Chef Dukes continues to follow his passions and aspirations.