Chef and entrepreneur Quintel Faison went from incarceration to running one of Brooklyn’s hottest catering businesses.
BY QUIN-NIYA CONTRERAS
news@queensledger.com
“The sky is the limit when it comes to my career and my passion for cooking”, says Quintel Faison.
He noticed at an early age that cooking brought people together in a way that nothing else could. Somehow, the atmosphere would feel lighter, the conversations seemed more genuine, and laughter echoed off the walls.
One of Chef De’Jour’s most vivid memories was his grandmother’s banana pudding. He’d always watch her make it by hand – cutting up the bananas into small pieces, preparing the vanilla custard, and chilling the desert to get that perfect savory sensation.
Growing up surrounded by violence, addiction, and imprisonment ultimately played a role in his incarceration from 2018-2021 – placing a pause on his culinary career. However, this period of his life strengthened his resolve towards improving his way of living. He wanted to make a difference for the community of NYC.
“Greatness isn’t easily achieved. You have to be willing to go through the ups and downs in order to find your balance” said De’Jour.
Having experienced many tragedies within his life such as the simultaneous death of his mother, grandmother, and imprisonment — events that would ultimately shape his perception on life. He began thinking about how he could use his culinary skills to help his community.
In 2021 after returning home from incarceration, De’Jour began a culinary program with FedCap — a program that offers services to help people achieve success within education and employment. Within the same year he decided to begin Chef De’Jour Catering & Private Food Services LLC, where he would sell food right outside his house in Queens.
He began to work as a sous chef for one year under a man named Chef Dylan — a Caribbean head chef who specialized in Italian cuisine near Myrtle ave. Faison was able to learn a lot about the culinary industry. Feeding up to 1,000 people per week, it proved difficult as his first job in the cooking industry, but he always remained optimistic and pushed forward.
Eventually his hard work had paid off: he earned enough to buy his own food truck which can be found near Nostrand Ave in Bed-Stuy, and from there he didn’t stop. In March 2022, he opened a catering location in East New York that offers platters of seafood and soul food for affordable prices. Then later on he expanded to LIC and now provides private and public catering along NYC and the tri-state area.
Through all of his endeavors, Chef De’Jour strives towards a central goal: helping the community by giving the youth more opportunities to become more involved in the culinary arts.
“If you find something that you love doing, you should try to become great at it, then you will never work another day in your life” says De’Jour.
In December 2025, De’Jour designed and led a culinary class for “Bushwick Leaders High School for Academic Excellence,” where students were taught the basics of food handling, protection, and career readiness. This allowed all students enrolled in the program to obtain their New York City Food Protection Certificate — which allows them to supervise food preparation, qualify for jobs in food service, and volunteer or work at organizations that require cooking.
De’Jour is currently working side by side with the City Council, so that he can acquire the funding needed to open up a non-profit organization. His plan is to create a place to teach the youth and community culinary skills that will aid them in the future to access more employment opportunities.
Here’s one final piece of advice to anyone looking to pursue any dream or passion of their own: “Have faith in yourself and God,” De’Jour said.“Things don’t happen to you. They happen for you.”
