How one Toronto chef’s ‘bet on himself’ led to 1M followers, Canada Reviews

From throwing the first pitch for the Jays last season to judging for competition shows he grew up watching, Toronto food content creator chef Dwight Smith has lived out some pretty epic dreams over the past few years — and it’s all because he took a chance on himself.

Though he’s now a full-time content creator and celebrity chef dishing it up across the culinary scene, the proud Scarborough native’s story in the kitchen begins like so many others: dishwashing as a teenager. It was there, at a Kelseys in Thornhill, that he first caught a glimpse of his future.

“It was a Saturday night, and I looked over at the line where everybody was cooking, and I just saw they were speaking in a different language. They were communicating with each other in a different way,” he says. “I said to myself, ‘I really want to be a part of that.’”

It didn’t take long for him to make that dream a reality. He found someone to cover his spot in the dish pit and finally moved to where he belonged—speaking the language on the line. He eventually enrolled at George Brown College’s culinary program and earned a Red Seal certification. Over the next 20 years, he honed his craft working alongside Michael Noble at Calgary’s NOtaBLE Steakhouse, Anthony Walsh and Michael Bonacini at O&B Hospitality, and Patrick Kriss of Alo Food Group. Then he returned to his own kitchen.

“I just got to a point where I decided it’s time for me to make a bet on myself,” Smith says. “I saw what happened during COVID and how fragile the restaurant industry is and I just said to myself I want to make sure that I’m doing everything that I can to put myself in the best position possible, mentally and financially.”

When Smith started posting videos of himself cooking recipes from around the world in 2023, he never imagined he’d reach one million followers. Given his Caribbean roots, it’s fitting that one of his first viral hits was a Jamaican patty recipe.

“Jamaican patties are huge, but not many people make them at home, so it was interesting for people to see me make them,” he says. “After that, chasing the feeling of a post doing well and getting all that positive feedback became addictive in a good way. I was so motivated to share more recipes because of it.”

Though he was moving up in the kitchen, content creation was the first time he built a reputation entirely on his own.

“I was always executing someone else’s vision in the kitchen, so when I started creating my own content and sharing my own recipes, seeing the response—especially at first—was a very surreal experience,” he says.

Since then, Smith’s experienced some pinch-me moments (like cooking for the Argos and meeting Lionel Messi) as well as full-circle moments like becoming a judge for shows like Top Chef and Bake Master Battle.

“I’m very grateful to be part of Food Network Canada and to be seen as a judge rather than a competitor. Everyone should be grateful to be on the show, but it’s nice to see that my work is recognized. I’ve worked really hard, and it feels good to know people see that,” he says. “For someone like me, those acknowledgments really boost my confidence.”

One of his favourite moments? Getting to work and learn in Jamaica.

“To go back to work and really integrate myself into the culture and cook for people in Kingston was just a great opportunity,” he says. “I loved it, so that was definitely a milestone.”

No matter where his career takes him, however, Smith says Toronto will always be home.

“The biggest thing I love about Toronto is the diversity. There’s no place in the world, in my opinion, in terms of just how many cultures. The cultural mosaic that we have here — it’s second to none,” he says. “That bleeds into the food scene so there’s just so many different options and opportunities to learn from different cultures here.”

If you’ve ever seen a video of Smith’s but forgot to write down the recipe, you’re in luck. The creator is currently updating his website to include a platform where all his recipes can be viewed and accessed for free.

“They’ll all be in one place so there won’t be any confusion, and everything will be very searchable and easy to find,” he says. “I’m very excited for that.”