Brentfield Lettsome’s love of the kitchen sparked at the young age of six, when he would help his mom prepare family meals.  His favourite dish was macaroni and cheese with ground beef.  Fast forward 20 years to today, Brentfield also known as Brent, is one of the Caribbean’s young, up and coming chefs with enviable skills in preparing some of the Caribbean’s most exotic cuisines. His pursuit of his love for cooking has led to his selection as one of the chefs that will be showcasing their culinary talents as part of the Celebrity Chefs Programme for Caribbean Week New York being celebrated from June 3-9, 2018.   

A line-up of Caribbean Chefs will be making cooking demonstrations at the prestigious Bloomingdale’s 59th Street store, to the delight of New Yorkers and visitors to the “Big Apple” and Brent will take centre stage on Wednesday, June 6th from 6-8 pm.

The 2010 Valedictorian of the Culinary Program of the Technical and Vocational Education Training Program at the H. Lavity Stoutt Community College, Brent was recruited as a Junior Chef on the 2011 B.V.I. Culinary Team. That team won a gold medal at the “2011 Taste of the Caribbean Culinary Competition” presented by the Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association, in Miami, Florida. 

After working at the YCCS Yacht Club in Virgin Gorda, the Treasure Isle Hotel and Tropical Fusion Beach Bar and Grill in Tortola, Brent spread his culinary wings to New York, deciding to relocate after Hurricane Irma.

Brent is currently a Lead Line Chef at Penelope NYC, a popular café, bar and bakery in New York City, after a stint as line chef at The Fat Monk Restaurant, a gastropub operated by celebrity chef, Rob McCue. 

Chef Brentfield says that he enjoys working at Penelope and would like to one day be Head Chef at a larger establishment or even his own restaurant.  In commenting on his representing the Territory during Caribbean eek, Chef Brentfield stated, “I am excited to share my cultural culinary expertise in an international arena with the hopes of joining my fellow chefs of the BVI in contributing to the boosting of Culinary Tourism” 

The Territory will also be represented by a contingent from the BVI Tourist Board headed by the Director of Tourism, Mrs. Sharon Flax Brutus. During the week the Board will participate in several events including; a special faith-based revival event for the Caribbean, a marketing conference, a tradeshow and forum.  TheBoard sees this as an opportunity to showcase and market the BVI, reassure the travel trade of its presence in the market, and network with key members of the travel industry.

Celebrating the theme of Caribbean Wellness, Caribbean Week New York is the largest regional tourism event in the New York area, where regional tourism executives, international media, travel agents, cultural ambassadors converge to promote, network and enjoy a stunning display of the rich and diverse culture of the Caribbean.  Caribbean Week is organized by the Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO), the regional tourism development organisation comprised of 24 Caribbean Government members along with several private sector entities.