As the spread of coronavirus upends most aspects of daily life, Tom Kent, who many may know from The Chappy Kitchen, is taking to social media to bring some laughs and joys to people’s lives.
For the past few days, Kent has been posting video skits of himself donning the persona of Chef Tomassito, a comical Italian chef character of Kent’s creation, to brighten up his Facebook follower’s days as people are staying at home to help prevent the spread of COVID-19.
Kent’s whimsical videos emphasize social distancing, proper hand washing, sheltering in place, and, of course, cooking. They’re “total slapstick comedy” with a “touch of awareness” to what’s going on in the world at the moment.
“He’s a little bit crazy Italian,” Kent said while in character. “A very a-confident. Wider spectrum, no a-blinders on.”
In one video, Kent uses a hand blender as a microphone while he serenades his viewers in his booming opera voice. On April Fool’s Day, Kent said he was finished portraying Chef Tomassito only to reveal at the end he was joking and would be back the next day. In another, he uses a ski pole to show how to hunt a goose.
Kent has delved into some method acting — the character of Chef Tomassito has started to appear off-camera as well.
“I think my wife is trying to kick me out … it’s driving everyone crazy,” he joked.
All of Kent’s videos can be found on his Facebook and his TikTok “chef_tomas” pages. The responses to his videos have also been heavy with praise.
“You’re hilarious. Did we ever meet? I need you in my life! Just to give me a good laugh of course,” Janet Messineo-Israel wrote.
In another post, Patricia Sanson said, “Bright spot everyday — keep them coming!”
The videos are a family affair. Four of Kent’s children — Jack, Chad, Burke, and Georgie — help with production.
“None of us knows what the hell we’re doing,” he said with a laugh. “We’re having fun doing it and I think it’s an important message to get out.”
Some of the videos have received more than 1,200 views, which for Kent is huge considering he only just started posting them.
Kent has been on Chappaquiddick for the past 26 years and a few years ago began cooking at The Chappy Kitchen. But he’s always been a common face at restaurants around the Island.
“I feel really comfortable in the kitchen talking to kitchen people,” Kent said.
Kent’s latest video focuses on masks and takes a comical approach to making your own.
“You go in the basement, garage, the attic. You find a cup-a-jock like this,” Chef Tomassito says as he slaps a jock strap. “Make sure you a-sterilize. Alcohol, disinfect, scrub a-brush get a-nice and clean.”
Kent said he’ll keep making videos because people enjoy them and he enjoys making them.
“Everyone is saying ‘this is what we need’,” Kent said. “Everybody’s coming together and I think the little 3½-4 minutes of these shows … I’m doing something for people that need it.”