Life & Work with Monti Carlo of Arts District

Today we’d like to introduce you to Monti Carlo.

Hi Monti, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
When I got the opportunity to audition for Gordon Ramsay on MasterChef, I was a 36-year-old unemployed single mom with no job prospects, no money, and nothing to my name left to sell.

I found myself in the ludicrous position where trying to win a world-renowned cooking competition was the only way I was going to keep my kid and me off the street. I had no formal culinary training and no way to afford it, so I did what I had to do and taught myself.

I spent three months cooking non-stop in a tiny 400-square-foot studio apartment. I’d take care of my 2-year-old son during the day and read cookbooks at night while he slept. I didn’t sleep for weeks and weeks on end.

Gordon liked my audition dish and gave me the opportunity to compete on the show. I made it to the Top 5. I didn’t win the cookbook deal or the $250,000 in prize money that I so desperately needed. But I did get my foot in the door. And when you’re stubborn AF, sometimes that’s all it takes.

A year after MasterChef, I started a food blog with Puerto Rican recipes. Two years after MasterChef, I got to host a special on FYI called “Make My Food Famous,” where home cooks competed to get their dishes on their favorite restaurant’s menu. I kept hustling. I started catering what I dubbed Cali-Rican cuisine: dishes that showed off Puerto Rico’s flavors developed with California technique. I started working as a line cook.

Three years after MasterChef, I landed the opportunity to host a digital series about baby food for Jessica Alba’s Honest Company. I asked the director if he needed help and landed my first scriptwriting and recipe development gig. I taught myself how to shoot and edit and started creating content. I started running a kitchen.

Four years after MasterChef, I got a call from the Senior Vice President of Programming and Development for Food Network. He wanted me to audition to host a show. I nailed it, and my first Food Network show, “Help My Yelp,” debuted on Monday, April 10th, 2017.

Since that day, I’ve shot shows for multiple other platforms, including Netflix, Roku, PBS, Cooking Channel, Tastemade, and Food Network. I’ve been on the Today Show and Good Morning America. I create culinary content for some of the biggest brands in the F&B world. I’m currently working on my first full-length cookbook, Spanglish, which will be published in the Spring of 2025 by Simon and Schuster’s Simon Element.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
There are challenges on every journey, and many times they are the biggest gifts. Things don’t go your way and it forces you to get creative. Self-doubt was my biggest challenge. There were many times I doubted I could make my dream come true. Especially on my way home after an 18-hour day at a restaurant, with feet so swollen it hurt to press on the gas pedal. I could only afford a one-bedroom. I slept on the couch so my son could have his own room. I was on government assistance. It was a challenging time. I thought that maybe all I would ever be was a forty-year-old waitress who had been on a reality show once.

I kept going for my son’s sake. I put Post-it notes all over our tiny apartment with my goals written on them. They were a constant reminder for me to continue reaching. I invested in the tools that I needed. I didn’t turn a single opportunity down. Little by little, my brand continued to grow.

Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
Long story short, you’ll find me where the food is. I’m a Telly Award-winning Food Media Personality with over a decade of experience producing, hosting, judging, and contributing to culinary shows on major networks. You can catch me doing my best not to talk with my mouth full on Netflix, Roku, Food Network, Cooking Channel, PBS, Hulu, ABC, NBC, FOX, and Tastemade.

Born and raised in Puerto Rico, I’m passionate about introducing tropical cuisine to the mainstream. I’ve had my island-inspired recipes and essays published in The Washington Post, Bon Appetit, The Spruce Eats, Budget Bytes, MasterChef: The Ultimate Cookbook, and the Jacques Pépin Foundation’s 2023 Video Recipe Book Cook with Jacques Pépin & Friends. I authored the cookbook Everyday Caribbean and am working on my second cookbook, Spanglish, which Simon & Schuster’s Simon Element will publish in the spring of 2025.

I’m honored to have worked with the prestigious James Beard Foundation as an Advisor, Taste America Host, Media Judge, Red Carpet Host, and Presenter for their world-renowned awards ceremonies in 2021, 2022, and 2023. One of the best moments of my life happened this past summer when I got to hand the first James Beard Award for Best Chef South to a Puerto Rican chef.

What sets me apart is my experience as a former radio host and comedian. I know how to find the funny and how to blend the storytelling skills I learned in my former professions with my culinary skills.

Are there any apps, books, podcasts, blogs or other resources you think our readers should check out?
I use The Flavor Bible, In Shot, and Canva every day of my life.

Contact Info:

• Website: themonticarlo.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/themonticarlo/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/themonticarlo/