Philman George was born in Canada and both of his parents are from the small Caribbean island of Barbuda. He was raised in Toronto, and his professional cooking career started when he enrolled in the Culinary Management program at George Brown College. Since then he has gained over a decade of experience working in some of Toronto’s finest private clubs and restaurants. Phil’s techniques were fine-tuned under the direction of Executive Chefs Louis Panotier and Daniel Villet, who both hailed from the small French speaking island of Martinique. Phil has expanded his repertoire over the years to include Italian, French, Californian, Caribbean, and Asian Fusion cuisine. This was further enhanced by working overseas as the Chef de Partie in Perth, Australia’s Red Herring restaurant which won the prestigious gold plate award.
Phil’s love for hip hop was enhanced by his upbringing in the Toronto’s Regent Park, where he spent most of his adolescent years. He wrote his first verse in grade 6 and never looked back. In the late 90’s, under the alias of “I.E.” Phil joined forces with Toronto’s theatrical hip hop crew Symbolik Music. This experience was essential to Phil’s growth as an entertainer, as the crew was known for their high energy and captivating stage presence.
The decision to combine hip hop and culinary arts was done in 2002 when he created The Rhyming Chef. Around that same time he met his future wife Ngardy Conteh who graduated from film school with a degree in film and television. Together they would go on to produce three Rhyming Chef DVD’s that gave Phil the platform to showcase his talent to the masses. This would lead to many appearances on TV, from Toronto’s popular morning show Breakfast Television to the Caribbean show Good Morning Antigua and Barbuda. In 2008 The Rhyming Chef was given the green light to produce TV series for the Glassbox Media Group, airing on the Bite and Aux channels in Canada. The series was titled The Rhyming Chef Barbuda and was shot on the pristine beaches of Barbuda and featured Phil rhyming and cooking in unison to show young men how to create impressive meals for their ladies. Ubanology magazine dubbed him “The king of the kitchen and the sound waves” and Sway magazine said that “He shows the viewers the right way to woo.” The show helped Phil land many celebrity chef appearances including Caribana, Caribbean Week, Hot & Spicy Food Festival and Antigua & Barbuda’s Food & Drink Industry Party.
Phil is also the host and co-producer of a show called “Cypher“, which is broadcasted on “Aux” across Canada and world wide on www.aux.tv. Cypher is TV show that covers all the elements of the underground hip hop scene.
Currently Phil is in developing more episodes of The Rhyming Chef and preparing for his wedding in Barbuda. Transforming his fathers beach bar and grill into a full service restaurant is his next project. He can be found in Toronto Canada in the summer months and in Antigua and Barbuda in the winter. To inquire about booking The Rhyming Chef for your event send an email to info@therhymingchef.com.
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