‘I was always in 10th gear’
Leaning In: Talking Floyd, fatherhood, food with Chef Venoy Rogers III
The news cycle is fickle: months of coronavirus, a white-hot burst of George Floyd, protests and Black Lives Matter. Now, COVID-19 is front and center again. Soon, perhaps — hurricanes. Then, elections. Before virus numbers resurged, I’d spoken with members of Orlando’s food community who, like me, were interested in keeping the nation’s renewed passion for civil rights in the spotlight. History has shown it’s not a sprint, but a marathon. Touchstones help. And food unites us all. “Leaning In” welcomes you to the table for ongoing conversation, questions, comfort. Recipes included.
“I think I’d bring some sort of super-elevated soul food . ... ”
Venoy Rogers III and I are talking about what to bring to our imaginary table, but it took us some time to get here. Until now, we’ve been tackling other topics: Parenthood. Protests. Racism. It’s been kinda heavy, especially for two people who don’t know
each other all that well. But we’ve managed, connected — laughed, even.
Circling back to food is comforting because it’s part of where our respective Venn diagrams overlap. The same is true for all of us, no matter where we’re from.
At this figurative table, Rogers and I are leaning in to have meaningful conversations, to ask and answer tough and sometimes uncomfortable questions, to help further the process as the world blinks open its eyes and purposefully — if a little painfully — begins to change for the better.
Rogers thinks braised oxtail with sweet potato spaetzle may take away some of the sting. I am inclined to agree.
Food is always front-of-mind for Rogers, executive chef for the B Resort & Spa (1905 Hotel Plaza Blvd. in Lake Buena Vista) and its signature restaurant — American Kitchen Bar & Grill. He got a late start in culinary.
“So, I was always in 10th gear,” he says, eager to work hard, accelerate his learning curve and, subsequently, his ascent to the top of the kitchen in an industry that he says, “is overall very diverse, but for people of color in top spots and executive positions it is still kind of a struggle.”
Rogers, the son of a Black father and Brazilian mother, says he surprises people all the time when he shows up at a table to greet guests or speak with clients about catering.
“But I’ve never let any of that bother me.” Rogers credits his parents, his dad in particular, with shaping him into a man who could do that.
“We were about to move into a white neighborhood where I would attend a predominantly white high school. And my dad and I had a talk.”
The message, he notes, was devoid of two things: hate and color.
“Work hard,” his father told him. “Nothing’s going to be given to you. Trust people, but keep your eyes open. And be careful.”
Venoy Rogers, Jr. — a Marine veteran turned federal police officer — shared some stories of his own, for context.
“I believed in what he was saying. I worked hard. I kept my eyes open. There were likely moments where racist things happened and I wasn’t even aware of it. I just took my dad’s advice and held myself responsible.”
It’s not enough to not be racist, the saying goes, you have to be anti-racist. June’s bloom of demonstrations saw interest anew in the phrase. Entire books have already been written about it. Rogers is wholly onboard, but admits that in the past, he’s been rendered inert by the shock when it presents itself.
Not long ago, in a previous job, he found himself frozen at the casual use of the word “colored” by a young employee.
“I didn’t say anything,” he says. “And as a manager, I should have. But I’ll be completely honest. It’s a touchy subject. It’s the workplace. And there’s a tiny bit of fear in stirring up those things.”
It was a one-on-one conversation. No other employees were involved. Rogers says he detected no malice, just ignorance.
“But I should have corrected him. I should have told him that it’s not acceptable, that people would be offended. If it happened today, I would.”
Rogers’ career has taken him from his home in southern California — he remembers worrying for his family in Los Angeles when the Rodney King verdicts were handed down — to Miami, to the shadow of the theme parks, where he’s now raising his 6-year-old daughter.
He doesn’t often cry but has found himself emotional in the wake of the killing of George Floyd, a 46-year-old black man, in Minneapolis in May. First for the horror itself, later as the Black Lives Matter movement found its footing.
“She doesn’t need to know everything at 6, but she saw me watching the protests,” he explains, and he repeated the cycle of sharing his dad had instilled. “We talked about what it was, why people were doing it.”
And in a COVID-friendly way — avoiding organized events “and any negativity; I wanted to show her the good in this,” they staged their own event for two, walking with homemade signs to a nearby shopping center, where passing cars could honk for equality, for justice for George Floyd.
“She lit up every time” says Rogers. “And I showed her: ‘Look! Look at all the people who support and believe in this!’ I think this was effective for her, and I think we were making other people feel good, too.”
Food also makes people feel good, he says. And so, may make it easier for people to have their own conversations about what’s been going on in the news, and in the streets — a topic that can be difficult to broach.
Rogers found comfort and encouragement in the messages of those who’ve made that effort and encourages others to do the same. a topic that can be difficult to broach.
“It brought me to tears a few times,” he says. “It’s not that anyone owes me, but I don’t think it hurts anything to reach out, ask ‘How are you doing?’
“When I read things like, ‘I’m checking on you,’ ‘I stand with you,’ it choked me up. And it’s not weird at all. I don’t know how it could be for anyone unless you have a huge chip on your shoulder. It’s been a great thing. Even with the tears, it was like: Wow, thank you.”
Some messages have been harder: What can I do? What should I do?
“These are tough, yes, but I can’t see getting bent out of shape when someone shows empathy or interest in a topic that’s extremely important for all of humanity. I think the majority of people of color are going to find some way — whatever that might be — to try and help answer those questions.”
What better can we in Orlando’s food community bring to the table — alongside those questions — than the belief that dialogue can bring greater understanding and positive change and something delicious and comforting to help us get there?
If things get a little heavy, you can always take time to think things over.
“Have seconds,” Rogers says.