From Kingston to Amsterdam: How I Ended Up Cooking in the Netherlands
Every chef has an origin story. Mine begins in Kingston, Jamaica — a city where the smell of jerk smoke drifts through the streets, where grandmothers guard their curry recipes like state secrets, and where food is the language that connects every family, every neighbourhood, every celebration.
Growing Up in Kingston
I didn’t grow up dreaming of becoming a chef. In Kingston, cooking wasn’t something you aspired to — it was something you simply did. My earliest memories are of watching the women in my family turn the simplest ingredients into meals that could feed the whole street. A handful of scotch bonnet peppers, some allspice berries, fresh thyme from the garden, and a tough cut of goat would become a pot of curry that could feed the entire street.
After high school, I enrolled in a food and nutrition programme. That’s when cooking shifted from something I loved to something I understood. The science behind the flavours, the techniques that sharpen a dish, the discipline of a professional kitchen — it all clicked. I knew this was what I wanted to do with my life.
The Caribbean Circuit
My first professional roles took me across the Caribbean. From Kingston, I moved to Sint Maarten, where the restaurant scene catered to international tourists with sophisticated palates. It was my first exposure to cooking for a global audience, and it taught me that great food crosses every cultural boundary.
From there, I spent time in The Bahamas, where the pace was different but the commitment to fresh, local seafood was inspiring. Conch, grouper, and spiny lobster prepared simply and served on the beach — it reinforced my belief that the best dishes start with the best ingredients.
Then came Curaçao, the island that would change my life in more ways than one. Curaçao has a unique culinary identity shaped by its Dutch, African, and South American influences. I worked at Kura Hulanda, a beautiful hotel in Willemstad, and later at the Van der Valk Plaza Hotel. The scale and precision of hotel-grade catering challenged me to think bigger, plan more carefully, and execute flawlessly under pressure.
It was also in Curaçao that I met Debby — a Dutch woman who would become my wife, my partner, and the reason I eventually made the Netherlands my home.
Moving to the Netherlands
In 2012, Debby and I moved to the Netherlands with our son. The transition wasn’t easy. The climate was colder, the culture was different, and Caribbean restaurants were few and far between. But the Netherlands offered something I hadn’t expected: real opportunity.
I joined Fletcher Hotels, one of the largest hotel chains in the country. It was a masterclass in European hospitality — the attention to detail, the service standards, the emphasis on consistency. I learned to adapt my Caribbean cooking to Dutch and European expectations while keeping the heart and soul of the flavours intact.
But the entrepreneurial spirit that runs through every Jamaican eventually won out. In 2014, I opened Chef Thomas Café & Catering in Zandvoort. It was a dream realised — my own place, my own menu, my own vision.
Finding My Voice as a Chef
The café in Zandvoort became more than a restaurant. It became a meeting point for cultures. Dutch families discovering jerk chicken for the first time. Caribbean expats finding a taste of home. Tourists stumbling in from the beach and leaving with a new favourite dish.
The Financial Dagblad, one of the Netherlands’ most respected publications, featured me in an article titled “Caraïbische Trots” — Caribbean Pride. Betty’s Kitchen, a popular food platform, called the café a “hotspot for anyone seeking exotic flavours.” Those moments confirmed what I’d always believed: that Caribbean food, cooked properly with good ingredients, can hold its own anywhere in the world.
The Evolution to Private Chef
Over the years, I noticed something. Many of my best experiences as a chef happened outside the restaurant — at private events, in people’s homes, at corporate gatherings. These intimate settings allowed me to connect directly with guests, tell the stories behind each dish, and create menus that were truly personal.
That’s when I began expanding into private chef services across the Netherlands. Today, I bring the Caribbean to dining tables in Amsterdam, Haarlem, The Hague, Zandvoort, and beyond. From intimate dinners for two to corporate events for five hundred, every event is an opportunity to share the flavours and warmth of the Caribbean.
What Caribbean-International Fusion Means to Me
My cooking is shaped by everywhere I’ve been. The jerk marinades of Jamaica. The fresh seafood of Sint Maarten and The Bahamas. The stewed meats of Curaçao. The seasonal produce of the Dutch countryside. The precision of European hospitality.
I don’t try to keep these influences separate. Instead, I let them blend naturally — just as they’ve blended in my life. A dish might feature Jamaican spicing with Dutch asparagus, or a classic French technique applied to a Caribbean ingredient. This isn’t fusion for the sake of novelty. It’s the honest expression of a chef who’s cooked in six countries and been shaped by all of them.
What’s Next
I’m expanding the private chef side of things, developing pop-up dining concepts, and pushing Caribbean-international cuisine in new directions. Every event is a chance to put something memorable on someone’s plate — to introduce a flavour they haven’t tried, and to remind them that a good meal is worth slowing down for.
Cooking is what I know best and what I do well. The kitchen in Zandvoort or a dining room in Amsterdam — the work is the same.
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