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Connection, Confidence, and Cooking: A Recipe for SuccessJordan Wilmot ’15

Associate Culinary Arts Degree from ALMA La Scuola Internazionale di Cucina Italiana

Meet him today, and it’s hard to believe lack of motivation was ever an issue for Jordan Wilmot ’15. He pressed pause on his traditional college experience to attend culinary school in Europe at ALMA La Scuola Internazionale di Cucina Italiana before landing a job as a chef in one of Montreal’s finest restaurants. It’s a life that demands discipline and dedication, and has him up early six days a week, putting in the time and perfecting his process. All this, and a pandemic side hustle, too: Spiceboyz Mtl, a free homemade meal delivery service he started during lockdown with his best friend and a government grant.

But Jordan will be the first to tell you he wasn’t always so driven. “When I arrived at McLean in sixth grade, I was feeling pretty uninspired by school,” he says. “But having caring teachers changed everything. It helped me build confidence and become more engaged.”

Caring faculty members like Bobby Edwards, “who made sure I knew his door was always open,” says Jordan, adding, “people at McLean were patient with me.” He remembers a time in Upper School when a book project weighed on him and his English teacher went above and beyond to lighten the load. “I hated reading and would find any excuse to not do it, but she sat with me at the end of every day and read with me. She had kids of her own and things to do, but still she did this for me and I’ll always appreciate that.”

Much like his self-confidence, Jordan’s interest in food was always there but took some time to click. “Food is huge in my family,” he says, “and it wasn’t until much later that I realized not everyone ate the same way at home that I did. I’d show up with lamb chops and steak and grilled asparagus,” he recalls with a smile. “At university, the cafeteria was so bad that I started cooking for myself and others and I liked the positive reinforcement I got from it.”

By then he was three years in at Concordia University in the heart of Montreal, studying classics, but realized he needed a change. Along with a friend who’d just graduated, off he went to Italy to follow his dream. “ALMA is in a castle that once belonged to Napoleon’s second wife, which is pretty cool,” he says. Jordan remembers walking in that first day and seeing everyone looking very professional in their whites: “I thought to myself ‘this isn’t TV’s Chopped, this is the real deal!’”

Over the course of his two-year program, Jordan met a lot of star chefs and got to see fine dining at its finest. “It was very inspiring,” he says. “I’d had amazing meals my whole life but never saw behind the scenes and all that goes into that. I fell in love with it.”

He likens restaurant culture to the military in terms of its strict codes of discipline, hierarchy, and teamwork. His internship at northern Italy’s renowned Ristorante Schöneck was a baptism by fire, with the fast pace of a Michelin Star kitchen and the added burden of a language barrier. But he credits McLean with helping him build the organizational tools–and the confidence and self-advocacy skills–to handle it.

When it comes to his own style of cooking, Jordan’s growth mindset serves him well. “I’m still trying to figure it out,” he says. “I’ve studied Italian cuisine, and I also love Japanese cuisine, but Jamaican food is home for me, it’s my culture. I’m open to it all.”

It’s an attitude cultivated during his time at McLean: “The school does a great job helping facilitate people’s interests whether you’re the best at it or not. If you like to act, do it. If you like to play sports, do that. You’re a happier person when you follow your passions.”

For Jordan, this includes spending time in nature, sports like soccer and snowboarding, and going out to eat with friends, naturally. “Montreal has everything I would want: good food, good activities, nature and hiking, beautiful things,” he says with the confidence that eluded him all those years ago. “It’s important to follow your own path because you never know where it might take you.”