Alma means soul in Spanish. Created to showcase Chef Melissa Araujo's Honduran heritage and take each guest on a journey through food and culture. The Soul has many stories to tell; Alma tells shares them through its dining experience. From Pollo Chuco, to Bloody Mary's and avocado toast Alma offers an extensive array of dishes focusing on Honduran Food. eatalmanola.com

 Growing up, Trent Bonnette worked for his parents’ restaurant in his hometown of Moreauville. “I swore I’d never open a restaurant,” he says. Thankfully, he went on to break that promise. Today, Bonnette brings almost thirty years' experience to Broken Wheel Brewery, and has built a reputation (and packed parking lots) by serving authentic Cajun cuisine featuring powerhouse seafood platters, elevated savory dishes such as crawfish étouffée and crab cakes, and rotating daily specials.  brokenwheelbrew.com.

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 While working at a petroleum storage facility, Andrew Caskey lived for the weekends to get a chance to cook a brisket all day long. Seeking a way to become self employed and allow more time to do what he enjoyed, he bought his food trailer in 2017 with no culinary training or experience. His hobby turned into a passion and eventually started running Bad Wolf BBQ full time a year later. Taking a tour through Texas to experience the high level of modern style BBQ, he knew he had to bring this style of cooking back home. Located at Heard freighthouse food park in downtown Ruston Louisiana, sits a food trailer serving craft barbecue heavily influenced from modern techniques from central Texas.  badwolfbbq.com.

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Executive Chef Eric Cook’s creation of Gris-Gris stems from his love of traditional New Orleans food. Cook created the restaurant in 2018 to provide an experience not currently available in New Orleans: Elevated New Orleans staples in a welcoming atmosphere. No fuss, just good food. Gris-Gris serves classic Southern dishes and New Orleans favorites such as shrimp and grits, chicken and dumplings and a whole redfish court-bouillon, along with some signature items including the chicken gizzard grillades, Oyster BLT and a sugarcane seared duck. grisgrisnola.com

Jason is a native of Thibodeaux, Louisiana who has made his name as “The Cajun Ninja” by cooking on the social media platforms Facebook and YouTube. His first cooking video went viral in 2016 and it currently has over 30 million views. Jason believes in sharing his passion for cooking through entertainment, empathy, and kindness towards others. He is the president of Cajun Ninja Products and has a Blackbelt in TaeKwonDo. He and his wife, Misty, are raising three beautiful girls. He’s come to realize that having girls means most compliments are geared towards his daughters taking after their mother, and he’s ok with that.  “Let’s get CrackaLackin! Pi-YAHHHHH!!” - thecajunninja.com

St. James Cheese Company has been a New Orleans staple since 2006. Opened by Danielle and Richard Sutton with the mission of bringing farmhouse and artisanal cheeses to the food scene. This quickly developed into a restaurant, full blown retail selections of fine foods, an event and catering department, as well as cheese education. With a combined tenure of twenty years at St. James Cheese Company, Al & Cree have been dealing cheese throughout Southeast Louisiana and the world.

​Together, they hope to inspire you to play with your food, and let you know that real food, and real cheese is for everyone.

 stjamescheese.com
 

Executive Chef, Daniel Dreher is a seventh generation, St. Francisville native and a graduate of the John Folse Culinary Institute. His culinary roots are in French cuisinine. He was trained by Chef Bryan Carr in St. Louis, MO. After Seven years he returned home to be near his family and to raise his kids in his home town. He owned and operated Fresh kitchen in Baton Rouge for four and half years. Upon selling the company he joined the team at Restaurant 1796 as the executive chef. It has always been a dream of his to have a restaurant in his home town and to give back to the community that his family has been a part of for so many generations. myrtlesplantation.com/restaurant-1796

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Brad Dupont, and his wife Julia Dupont own Ronnie’s Boudin in both Baton Rouge and Hammond, LA. They took over the original location in 2011 and redesigned everything about the business based on their family cultures. They specialize in Cajun cuisine, especially boudin and cracklin, but cook a wide variety of different foods. Their business really took off after winning the 2013 Lafayette Boudin Cookoff following the opening of their Hammond location. Today they proudly serve both the Baton Rouge and Tangipahoa Parish areas with terrific Cajun flavors; as well as, serving the wholesale needs of other restaurants and grocery stores thru our USDA Inspected wholesale products. https://ronniesboudin.com/​

Chef Anthony Felan is a graduate of Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts in San Francisco where he began his journey in the culinary world. His experience cooking in some of the Bay Area's best restaurants, as well as his childhood memories of working in his grandfather's garden, instilled in him a deep respect for fresh ingredients. His love for Louisiana and his family brought him back home in 2010. In 2017, Anthony's drive for something of his own led to his first business endeavor. Fat Calf Boucherie started as a stationary food trailer at Red River Brewing Company, serving gastro-pub style fare utilizing locally raised meat. His popular food trailer concept evolved from a 10-item menu parked outside the building to moving inside the brewery and expanding to a full menu. fatcalfbrasserie.com

Cam Gautreau was raised in Prairieville, LA. His love for cooking started when participating in the ProStart Program at Dutchtown High School. Graduating in 2015, Gautreau attended Chef John Folse Culinary Institute at Nicholls State University, and worked at Cinclare Southern Bistro—an experience which enabled him to hone his culinary skills while preparing food of the highest quality. Gautreau joined City Group Hospitality as Sous Chef at Rouj Creole Restaurant in 2021. After stints at Rouj Creole and Beausoleil, Gautreau was promoted to Executive Chef of Proverbial Wine Bistro, where he demonstrates an approach to food that marries classic recipes and techniques with modern flavors and flare. proverbialwinebistro.com

Born in Abbeville, Louisiana, and raised in New Iberia, Willie attended Delcambre High School before pursuing his culinary education at the Culinary Arts Institute of Louisiana. After gaining experience as a cook at Jubans Restaurant in Baton Rouge, he returned home to work at Rip Van Winkle Gardens, where he was promoted to Executive Chef in 1999, a position he held until the restaurant closed in 2001. He then joined Cypress Bayou Casino, where he progressed from Roundsman to Executive Chef, earning over 100 medals in culinary competitions along the Gulf Coast. Willie values the diversity of the casino's restaurants and the talented team he works with, and when not cooking, he enjoys spending time outdoors with family and friends, fishing, and hunting in Louisiana. cypressbayou.casino/dine/mr-lesters-steakhouse

Owen Hohl, the Executive Chef of Hot Tails Restaurants, was born in Puerto Cortes, Honduras and grew up in Metairie, Louisiana. In 2010, Hot Tails in New Roads opened, and he was given the opportunity to showcase and expand his culinary experience. Throughout his thirteen year career at Hot Tails, Owen was promoted to Executive Chef and was instrumental to the successful opening of a second and third location of Hot Tails in Prairieville and Zachary, Louisiana. Owen strives in creating memorable dishes with his Central American, Cajun, and Creole influences. With those cultures backing his dish Owen was crowned Louisiana Seafood King and is now the ambassador of Louisiana Seafood. www.hottailsrestaurant.com

A whole-animal butcher shop working exclusively with local farms, Iverstine Farm + Butcher opened in Baton Rouge in 2016 to provide local farm-raised meats to customers while supporting farming partners that prioritize land-healing farming methods. Iverstine founder Galen Iverstine is a St. Francisville Food & Wine Festival stalwart, having served his house-made bratwurst sausage in the Beer & Brats Garden since the festival's founding. iverstinebutcher.com

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Chef Nick Kent’s passion for the culinary arts began early in his family’s St. Francisville restaurant, where he honed his skills and went on to win culinary competitions across Louisiana. Fast forward to today, and he has established himself as an up-and-coming talent in the regional culinary scene. After starting at Restaurant 1796 five years ago and working his way up to Sous Chef, Nick is now stepping into the role of Executive Chef at Blue House Hospitality’s newest venture, Big River Pizza Co., which opened in Spring 2024. bluehousehospitality.com.

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A southeast native, Chef Jeffery Knight blends creative Southern flavors with rustic Italian influences to create a unique culinary experience. His credentials include working under the direction of Chef Corey Bahr at Parish and Nona in Monroe, LA, where he refined his approach to blending regional and rustic styles. Now at Frankie's on Main, Chef Jeffery brings his signature style to the kitchen, showcasing bold, authentic flavors that honor his Southern roots with a touch of Italian inspiration. frankiesonmain.com

Txow Txow Pintxos is New Orleans' "number one Basque inspired pintxo pop by a Jewish guy from California." An homage to the pintxo bars found all over Basque Country from the traditional to the avant garde, Txow Txow aims to bring the world's greatest bar snacks (pintxos!) to the world's greatest bar city, New Orleans! We pride ourselves on sourcing high quality ingredients from smaller producers across the Gulf South whenever possible, and
showcasing the bounty of our region in a way that's fun, approachable, and of course delicious! txowtxow.com

Eleazar Mondragón (left), head chef and co-owner of Shreveport’s Ki Mexico, has been creating amazingly eclectic Mexican dishes for 12 years. Eleazar studied at Le Cordon Bleu in Austin before joining Ki Mexico.

Rodrigo Mondragon (right) is co-owner of Ki Mexico, and a foodie to the bone. Rodrigo is in charge of general operations of the restaurant, although sometimes he steps into the kitchen to make his from-scratch ramen—a Ki Mexico specialty. kimexico.com

Chef Brett Monteleone serves as the Director of Culinary for Hufft Marchand Hospitality, overseeing food and beverage operations for The Overpass Merchant and 5 other restaurants throughout South Louisiana. Before running the show for HMH, Brett worked his way up through kitchens across the state, from fine dining at Jacmel Inn in Hammond to coastal casual at Junior's On Harrison in New Orleans. While Chef loves the day-to-day life of a Director of Operations, he truly loves to cook and is excited to return to the SFF&WF in November! hufftmarchand.com

A native of Loreauville, Louisiana, Chef Chris Motto was surrounded by some of the country’s best food at an early age. Growing up immersed in the vast food driven culture in Louisiana, he began to realize the power of good food and its ability to bring people together and celebrate life. Now, as Chef de Cuisine at Jubans Restaurant and Bar, he’s excited to bring the freshest local ingredients to the table and keep pushing the boundaries of Louisiana cuisine. Chef Motto's journey has been filled with recognition and honors, including being a Black Jacket recipient on Hell’s Kitchen (Season 18) and being named to Baton Rouge Business Report's "Forty Under 40.  www.jubans.com

Jordan Ramirez's passion for food has been a constant presence in Baton Rouge's culinary landscape since 2006. After managing the specialty foods section at Whole Foods, he was inspired to create his hot sauce brand, Southern Wild, and went on to open the award-winning Chow Yum Phat in White Star Market in 2017. The restaurant's success has led to a brick-and-mortar location in the Perkins Road Overpass, showcasing Ramirez's unwavering commitment to bringing innovative and delicious cuisine to the Baton Rouge community. chowyumphat.com

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Greta’s Sushi is a New Orleans based mobile kitchen that provides pop ups, omakase, private parties, and catering services. With an academic thesis based on psychology of community gardens and background in James Beard kitchens, Greta founded her business based on pillars of integrity, sustainability, and supporting local. instagram.com/gretassushi

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Patrick is dedicated to building a culture of passion and precision in the kitchen, instilling a sense of pride in every dish. With a clear vision of attracting a new generation of diners, Patrick is poised to continue the restaurant’s legacy, blending tradition with fresh, modern flavors. His mantra, “Cook with love,” speaks to his commitment to crafting dishes that celebrate life’s moments regardless of the occasion, ensuring every guest has a remarkable dining experience.

Patrick’s vision for Ruffino’s is to make it a place where both long-time patrons and new guests feel at home, with dishes that reflect the heart and soul of Louisiana cuisine. ruffinosrestaurant.com

Born in Saint Martinville and raised in San Francisco, California, Chef Grayling Thibodeaux started his culinary journey at his local YMCA Café, at the age of 9. With a passion for baking, he went on to attend and graduate from the California Culinary Academy with a certificate in Patisserie & Baking. From there, he got a job as a pastry cook at the restaurant 1300 on Filmore in San Francisco. As his culinary expertise grew, so did his desire to move back to his parents’ hometown of St. Martinville where he then started working at The St. John Restaurant in 2010 as a line cook and for the past three years Head Chef. thestjohnrestaurant.com.

Sophina Uong, a James Beard 2024 Best Chef South semi-finalist, is the Executive Chef and Co-Owner of Mister Mao in New Orleans, a restaurant recognized by Bon Appétit as one of the “50 Best New Restaurants”. Renowned for her "inauthentic" globally-inspired cuisine, Uong creatively blends her deep knowledge of international flavors with a unique interpretation of Southern cooking. mistermaonola.com

At Whiskey Prime, our talented culinary team brings a wealth of expertise to the kitchen, blending traditional Southern flavors with innovative techniques to deliver an unforgettable dining experience. Specializing in signature steaks and the freshest Gulf Coast seafood and ingredients, our team’s passion and creativity ensure that excellence is at the heart of every plate. Whiskey Prime is a standout on the Mississippi coast. whiskeyprime.biz

Born in Pascagoula, Mississippi and taught to cook by his grandmother, Chef Kristian Wade was on the Beau Rivage opening team in 1999. Chef Wade moved through the numerous kitchens and up the culinary ranks at Beau Rivage, beginning as sous chef in Memphis Q Steakhouse and Barbecue Restaurant to steady promotions to chef de cuisine, chef tournant and in January 2007, executive sous chef. In March 2015 he was promoted to Executive Chef where he is responsible for Beau Rivage’s day-to-day culinary operations, overseeing 13 restaurants and 19 kitchens including his latest vision, Coraline’s, a fine dining Gulf-to-table concept featuring Cajun and Creole-inspired recipes presented with a modern hometown twist. beaurivage.mgmresorts.com/en/restaurants/coralines.html