A championship does not become credible when it is announced. It becomes credible when serious people agree to judge it.
That is why we are proud to announce the first two judges confirmed for the Jamaica Jerk Championship. Their presence does more than add distinction. It signals the seriousness of the standard we intend to uphold.
Chef Andrew Black is Jamaican-born and internationally respected for a style of modern fine dining that combines discipline, imagination, and deep culinary perspective. He is the 2023 James Beard Award winner for Best Chef: Southwest and a 2022 James Beard semifinalist for Outstanding Chef. His culinary path began in Jamaica’s resort kitchens and later included a European fine-dining experience at the Ritz in Paris before he established himself in Oklahoma City as an acclaimed chef, restaurateur, author, and entrepreneur. His place on this panel carries particular meaning because it connects Jamaican roots with international achievement at the highest level.
Joining him is Chef Dae Kim, the acclaimed founder of Nōksu in Manhattan, a restaurant that has earned Michelin stars in both 2024 and 2025, making him the youngest executive chef in New York City history to win. Chef Kim trained at three-Michelin-star Per Se and has quickly earned recognition as one of the most closely watched chefs in New York. He was also featured in the first episode of Knife Edge: Chasing Michelin Stars, reflecting the attention his work is drawing on the international culinary stage.
These first two appointments make clear that this Championship is being built with intention. If jerk is to be judged seriously, it must be judged by people whose own work reflects mastery, discipline, and credibility. That is how a standard begins. Not with noise, but with discernment.
The Jamaica Jerk Championship is being built with national soul and international stature. That means the judging must reflect both cultural understanding and global culinary authority. It must be capable of recognizing mastery, disciplined enough to reward craft, and respected enough to give the Championship real legitimacy from the beginning.
Chef Andrew Black and Chef Dae Kim do exactly that.
They are also only the beginning. The full panel will include James Beard, Michelin, and celebrity judges, both Jamaican and international, reflecting the breadth of expertise, perspective, and attention this Championship is designed to attract.
#Respect the Jerk
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