About Chef Paul
Born and raised on the sunny island of Barbados, Paul Griffith discovered his stellar talent in the kitchen at an early age, even as he excelled in more typical teenage interests such as basketball and athletics. Even as a restless schoolboy, he was already turning everyone onto his dishes, cooking food far more delicious than anything to be found at his school’s cafeteria. Rather than dine on it himself however, he’d sell it to his ravenous classmates and use the money to pay for various school supplies. This is when he started his first Pizza making business at the age of 14.
It wasn’t long before Griffith chased his culinary calling from Barbados to Miami, where he would attain a Bachelor of Science degree in Culinary Arts from the prestigious Johnson & Wales University in 2000. Once more, Griffith proved to be ahead of the pack while at college by making a connection with the members of the legendary reggae band Inner Circle. This link would lead to his employment at the band’s renowned Circle House recording studio complex in North Miami, where Griffith sharpened his skills by preparing sumptuous fare for international recording artists and producers such as Julio Iglesias, Enrique Iglesias, Jose Feliciano, P. Diddy, Shakespeare, Nas, Faith Evans, Tricky, Cash Money Millionaires, as well as countless others. For most starry-eyed 22 year olds, this would be more than enough. For Griffith, it was a launching platform.
In 2001, Griffith began work as a private chef in the Miami Beach studio of Dallas Austin, the producer of dozens of hit singles by artists such as TLC, Madonna and Boyz II Men. Upon Austin’s relocation to his hometown Atlanta, “Chef Paul” – as he was now coming to be known – was referred to Denzel Washington, who was in Miami to star in the hit thriller “Out of Time”. It would prove to be a momentous job for Griffith, as it was during this employment that Washington, after many conversations in the kitchen, suggested he add Personal Training to his services. Washington also referred Griffith to comedian Martin Lawrence who soon arrived in town to film the blockbuster action-comedy “Bad Boys II”. Although working on location proved to be challenging, it was rewarding as well and Griffith was able to perform his duties in the limited cooking environment. Shortly thereafter, Griffith was retained to work for singer/song writer Lenny Kravitz in his Miami Beach mansion where he prepared meals for him and his close knit family.
In 2003, Griffith took on a different kind of assignment, beginning work as the private chef for the CEO of an investment firm with a Hedge Fund which boasts (at the time) an impressive 3 Billion dollars of asset management. During his time working for the CEO and his family, Griffith was responsible for preparing meals in their Coral Gables estate, as well as meals for trips aboard two of the CEO’s Gulfstream aircrafts. During these four years, Griffith was also responsible for personally training the CEO, his wife as well as Miss Barbados, Miss Belize and several prominent Miami attorneys and business people.
By 2007, “Chef Paul” was ready to strike out on his own. Forming Body Mind and Soul International Inc, Griffith began dramatically transforming the lives of clients all throughout South Florida through integrated training and eating plans. Back in 2006, he learned the valuable lesson of being physically fit as he underwent a biopsy for a cancer scare. After the scare proved to be just that and nothing more, he worked harder than ever at his personal training with a renewed focus on healthy food preparation. He also acquired a Sports Nutrition certification, along with a CPR certification. Since then, he has continued to be in demand, working for the likes of famed photographer Jonathan Mannion, Lil’ Wayne, producer Salaam Remi, Akon, T-Pain, Rick Ross, DJ Khaled, as well as his old friends at Circle House Studios and more. He continues to train and “chef it up” on a daily basis, helping many people from different walks of life achieve and maintain their goals.
In 2009, Chef Paul, after many years in business decided to sharpen his business acumen by furthering his education. After being accepted to many colleges for the Master’s of Business Administration program, he ultimately settled on Nova South Eastern University ‘GO Sharks!’ By the beginning of 2011, ‘CP’, the moniker he coined in grad school, attained his Master’s of Business Administration with a concentration in Entrepreneurship.
In 2012, Chef Paul was retained by Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson to prepare all his meals for the ‘A-list’ star and his family. Even though it was a challenging position, Chef Paul took it in stride and learned a whole new element of culinary: an arsenal he has now added to his repertoire of culinary skills.
In 2015, Chef Paul and his long time partner welcomed a beautiful little girl and she totally changed his world. Chef Paul, took a much needed hiatus from the Culinary world, although continuing to work exclusively with Mr. Johnson and only taking few appointments including spearheading the first ever Caribbean-China food festival in Beijing, China. Chef Paul, along with fellow Barbadian Chef, Michael Hinds and in association with several Foreign embassies and a Chinese Governmental delegation, created, orchestrated, presented and prepared Caribbean cuisine in Beijing for over 1500 people over the 3 day festival. He said, it was the opportunity of a lifetime and hopes to bring the festival and Caribbean cuisine to other Eastern countries as well as learning some of their cooking techniques and flavours.
Upon returning to the his home in Florida, CP finally took a break, put the company on a suspension and enjoyed quality time with his new family. Quality time that including travelling to various countries over the world spending much needed downtime. CP, however, enjoys learning local cuisine where ever he travels and has incorporated these gastronomical finds to his culinary selection. Look for them on your plate.
‘Eat, you deserve it!‘ is the tag line of CP and tells people, literally, eat, enjoy food, enjoy life, slow down, you deserve it.
