Chef Bio
Chef Francis Collymore Bio
As a child growing up in Barbados, Francis spent much of his time in his grandmother’s kitchen. His grandmother was always cooking which meant Francis was always helping… that is, when he wasn’t playing soccer. After high school, he enrolled in the Restaurant and Hotel School in Barbados. Already a natural and experienced cook, Francis now wanted to learn the business of a restaurant.
Living in a tourist destination enabled Francis to acquire experience in both 3- and 4-star resorts: first, as a line cook at Sam Lords Castle in Christ Church, Barbados; then to the west coast of the island at Cunard’s Paradise Hotel in St. Michael’s, Barbados. After just 2½ years, he graduated to Sous Chef at the prestigious 4-star Haywoods Resort.
Having worked successfully in Barbados for over six years, Francis was ready to leave his home to begin a career in New York City. For two years he served as the Executive Chef of a high-volume seafood restaurant at the South Street Seaport. When Dock’s opened in 1988 on 40th & 3rd, Francis left the seaport job and began working there as a line cook, quickly moving up to Executive Sous Chef. Dock’s was a hot spot in the early 1990s, known for its Fortune 500 clientele. It was there that Francis worked under renowned chef Stanley Kramer.
In 1994, Francis joined Virgil’s Real BBQ in New York City as Executive Sous Chef. True-to-form, it wasn’t long before he advanced to the position of Executive Chef. In his five years with Virgil’s, he mastered the art of BBQ, traveling all over the South to research America’s best BBQ. Francis and the Virgil’s team put the restaurant on the map as one of the city’s favorite places for BBQ lovers to pig out. After five years he left for Oscar’s in the Waldorf Astoria Hotel, providing slightly more haute (but equally delicious) cuisine for many satisfied, royally-treated guests, including Queen Elizabeth. Francis’ time at The Waldorf Astoria was followed by his “homecoming” return to Virgil’s.
He remained at Virgil’s for a few more years until he joined Big Bubba BBQ in The Mohegan Sun Resort in 2001 as Executive Chef. Now, years later, Big Bubba’s has become a home-away-from-home for Francis and a natural environment for his love of downhome cooking and his BBQ expertise.
Big Bubba’s is part of the Off The Menu Restaurant Group joining CEO Anthony Mazzola’s other acclaimed restaurants in New York City: ‘Cesca, Accademia di Vino, and Trattoria di Vino.
