Meet Gabriel “Gabe” Griggs of BoyMeetsGrills in Hollywood

Today we’d like to introduce you to Gabriel “Gabe” Griggs.

Gabriel “Gabe”, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I have been on the culinary scene officially since 2016 but I have been cooking for as long as I can remember. Growing up in a single-family household my mother installed the basics in me young so that I could take care of myself on nights where she’d work late or I’d have a late practice. (Basketball & Baseball). Through college and my younger 20s cooking was more of a hobby and one of those hidden talents I’d use to impress women. I actually did and continue to make a living as a freelance television producer. In 2016, my father was diagnosed with Gioblastoma and began undergoing aggressive chemotherapy after a brutal brain surgery that took his mobility and ability to speak. After serving 25 years in the military and fighting in 2 major wars, in front of me lied a man who was a shell of his former self and even worse left to deal with no help from the VA. We weren’t very close when I was growing up but his condition was getting worse, so I went to stay with him for a couple of weeks after the surgery not knowing how much longer he was going to be alive.

At the time I had been doing research on CBD and its effects on cancer patients and the human body in general and had actually went to visit him with the intention of letting him try CBD and seeing if it would do anything for him since the chemo was causing him to constantly be in pain and never hungry. We started with a salve to which his body responded to and watched his arm go from barely being able to lift to put on a table to raising it over his head with no tightness. Knowing the effects of regular THC edibles and now seeing that CBD was effective, I decided to marry the ideas and start cooking with CBD to see the response. I made my own oil with flower and coconut oil and began making little meals starting with breakfast dosed with CBD for my father. After a couple of days, there were some subtle but noticeable changes in his behavior, alertness and appearance that let me know this was actually working. When I returned to California, I randomly came across a post looking for people who were interested in cooking and cooking with cannabis.

Naturally, I saw this as a sign and inquired further about it. Turns out this was a CBD cooking showcase called Culinary and Cannabis with a cooking competition component for those interested in attending. This was the first time I ever ventured out of my house to the masses with anything that I’ve ever cooked. I had no idea how people would receive my food but I was confident I was meant to be there and share my talents with the world. I introduced a savory meat pie a la the “Jamaican beef patty” with ground bison/beef mix and a homemade blueberry bbq sauce medicated with CBD. The reception to my food was crazy but what made me happy was knowing there was a community of people out there that I could be an asset to, (that and being written up in High Times :p). Since then, I have been working on refining my skills in the kitchen and making delicious meals for friends, family, celebrities and socialites alike. Now at 36, I am on my second career, being a private chef. I still love production, but there is an effect that my cooking has on people that lets me know I’d be crazy to stop. Last month marked my 1 year anniversary establishing an LLC and growing as an entity in not only the cannabis space but the culinary space as a whole.

We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
I thought being a freelancer was the hardest thing that I’ve ever done until I became an entrepreneur. This has been the hardest transition of my life as I’ve gone from a career where I was on the senior level and doing very well to being virtually unknown and trying to convince people in a food mecca such as LA to give me a shot. Every week I wonder where the money is going to come from, am I going to book a client this week, maybe a catering event, is there someone who needs a meal plan? These thoughts run through my brain like a hamster wheel, but the crazy thing is, I’m happy. I’m doing all the work for myself and though it can be a lonely, hard road sometimes, ultimately if anyone is worth the sweat and tears, I am.

We’d love to hear more about your business.
I do work as a private chef. Personal chef and also do catering for myself and an outside company. People most know me for my wings and crazy sauces. I love the mixture of sweet and savory so I like to make sauces that give savory foods, particularly meats a hint of a sweet finish. It messes with people’s minds and I love it. I’m also pretty certified on the grill, the name says it all. I also have more recently been known for my vegan mac n cheese (yup vegan and I’m not!) I think what sets me apart from others is my relationship with my customers. I currently specialize in date nights and small gatherings like girls night out and other private parties. I prefer the intimate settings as I want people to feel like I’m the homie who just happens to throw down in the kitchen and be excited to try my food. I particularly want to target couples because I think food holds a bigger place in relationships than people think. Most of your first dates are food-oriented, weddings, family gatherings, even arguments over what you’re going to eat. I want to be the person that alleviates that for you, for one night at least you and your partner only have to focus on what’s important. Each other. I’m a guy with no formal training who was blessed with a gift that I chose to nurture and I put love and hard work in every spoonful of food that I make. I feel like people can relate to that and want to root for me because they see a bit of themselves in me.

What were you like growing up?
Growing up, I was a nerdy kid who happened to be very athletic. I started out in gymnastics and band, was in the social studies bee in 1st grade and played Martin Luther King in a play in the 5th grade. I played baseball a majority of that time as well and was outside as much as possible. I grew up in a neighborhood of 20 high buildings, 18 stories each and a lotta trouble to get into. My mother was on me a lot and although I was free to play with my friends, she or my brothers always had a lookout. As I got older, I tried to mask being smart but tested into a program called Prep 4 Prep in 7th grade and that altered the course of my whole life. I was always very competitive and determined. I learned the importance of sacrifice early as I spent two summers in school during that program so that I could enter a prestigious private school in Manhattan and out of the New York City public school system. By that time, I was done with band and gymnastics as they weren’t “cool” in my neighborhood and playing basketball like everyone else. I played basketball and baseball in high school and that was relatively my life. I played sports, hung out with friends either in manhattan or back in my neighborhood and ran all over New York City. I was clubbing early (not drinking), partying in houses I couldn’t afford to walk in and coming back home to gunshots, dealers and addicts all around. It was a very interesting childhood, but as is growing up in NYC. I wouldn’t change a thing.

Pricing:

• Personal Chef Rate -$175 + groceries

Contact Info:

• Email: chef@boymeetsgrills.com
• Instagram: @boymeetsgrills

Image Credit:
@kenlocker

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