Chef Jeff Henderson’s journey has taken him from poverty in South Central Los Angeles to selling drugs to being incarcerated for nearly 10 years for drug trafficking and conspiracy. Later, he made history as the first African American executive chef at Caesars Palace and was executive chef at Cafe Bellagio.
Circumstances that could’ve broken him actually made him. He found hope in the darkest place on earth and uncovered his gift—his passion for food.
Henderson describes prison as a turning point. It’s where he learned about people who didn’t look like him or come from the same place as him, such as the "Cadillac Crew” of high-level Wall Street types who watched “60 Minutes,” “20/20,” and “National Geographic” and read “USA Today.” It’s also where a man put his hand on Henderson’s shoulder and called him son—a moment that showed Henderson, for the first time, that another man genuinely cared about him and saw his potential.
Henderson worked in the prison kitchen, and for the first time in his life he was praised for doing something good. He unlocked his creativity, discovered the flavors he could bring to his dishes and the joy he brought to other inmates with his food.
After his release in October 1996, Henderson learned the power of second chances. He couldn’t get hired most places because he was convicted felon. But someone took a chance on him.
He applied for a chef position at Caesars Palace, where the head chef asked him if he had killed anyone (the answer was no). Then he asked Henderson to do a tasting for him and his team. It was a six-course tasting where he would compete with six other chefs vying for the same job.
“I always had to be better. … So I hit seven courses while everybody else did six,” he said. Henderson used different china from the different restaurants in Caesar's Palace for his tastings while the other chefs used the same boring bone-white china. His dishes stood out in both flavor and presentation, giving each their own identity.
The rest, as they say, is history. “The chef was blown away and I got hired,” said Henderson.
Throughout his career, Henderson has always been committed to giving back in his community, especially for at-risk youth.
He founded The Chef Jeff Project in Las Vegas “to empower the next generation of young men and women to proudly take their rightful places in society with a trajectory toward success” by helping them become respectful, productive, self-sufficient citizens.
Focusing on foodservice, participants are trained and educated on everything from cooking and baking to restaurant cleaning and sanitation, and the principles of hospitality and customer service.
“We teach middle-class values,” he said, noting that he takes the kids on field trips to different Vegas hotels to watch how patrons eat, drink, interact with servers, and how they communicate so they can draw comparisons that help to educate them on different types of customers.
“How do we train them? How do we teach them the value systems so they can get access? And that’s what it boils down to—getting access,” he said.
Through food, lives can be, and have been, transformed.
“When you think about transformative food, you think about where there's human potential, how food impacts life,” said Henderson. “My story is not a traditional chef story…I never thought how cooking would be my passport to life until I went to prison,” he said, adding:
“There is always time to recognize your gift … There's always time to recognize that you have a power.”
Chef Jeff Henderson spoke at the 2025 NACS Leadership Forum. Next year’s event will take place February 10-12 at the Fontainebleau in Miami Beach.