Almost a decade later, the entrepreneurial duo still sells out the food and meals they once delivered to customers. The two bonded over their fondness for cooking and entertaining and built their West Coast empire of freshly cooked fried chicken, seafood and soul food dishes. ![]() Meanwhile, Smith gained his knowledge from jumping right into the kitchen. He later received professional training at Le Cordon Bleu cooking school in Las Vegas, Nevada. Jenkins’ culinary training began at home in the kitchen, helping his mother. The two dads used their street influence and social media to spread the word about their dishes, including their notorious “Trap Mac N’ Cheese.” Jenkins, 35, is a member of the Crip gang, and Smith, 37, is a member of its rival group, the Bloods. You got people running out the house, you know? So, the look of it was a trap, but we were in the kitchen. “Someone was always by the door trying to pick up a plate. “You would have thought we in there selling drugs, the way the house was always jumping,” Smith said about the name’s inspiration. They recalled selling plates out the back door to family and friends in a manner that frequently fed their community on a weekly and sometimes daily basis. Jenkins and Smith challenged the traditional understanding of the word “trap” and made it an acronym: Take Risks and Prosper. Their newest cookbook features a foreword from Los Angeles native Snoop Dogg and 50 mac n’ cheese recipes influenced by the United States and other international destinations, including their signature recipe. ![]() ![]() “Everybody loves food…food is a universal language.”įive years after the release of their first book, Trap Kitchen Bangin’ Recipes From Compton, the pair are back with their second book, Trap Kitchen: Mac N’ All Over the World. ![]() The product happened to be food,” Jenkins told Blavity. The only thing we did to turn a negative to a positive was, switch out the product. Jenkins and Smith chatted with Blavity about changing narratives, their new mac n’ cheese cookbook, expansion and so much more. Combined with their culinary skills, hustle and social media, the California-based duo created the food phenomenon known as Trap Kitchen L.A. Chefs Malachi “Spank” Jenkins and Roberto “News” Smith are two former gang members who turned their dreams into reality.
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