Famous Louisiana Chefs

John Besh

John Besh is a popular chef, restaurateur, TV personality, and cookbook author. Known for championing New Orleans cuisine, Besh promotes Louisiana regional cooking in his restaurants, cookbooks, and television shows.

Restaurants

His flagship restaurant, August, features contemporary French cuisine and highlights local ingredients. Gourmet magazine has featured this New Orleans fine dining institution in their “America’s Top 50 Restaurants” and “Guide to America’s Best Restaurants” lists.Based

Borgne, located at the Hyatt Regency New Orleans, is all about coastal Louisiana cuisine, while Lüke, located in the New Orleans Central Business District, celebrates Creole, French, and German cuisine.

Besh also owns New Orleans restaurants Johnny Sanchez, Shaya, Besh Steak, Domenica, and Willa Jean. He was the CEO of the Besh Restaurant Group until 2017.

Background

Born in Meridian, Mississippi and raised in Slidell, Louisiana, Besh has deep roots in the South. His family are practicing Catholics and go to the St. Luke the Evangelist Church in Slidell.

Besh graduated from The Culinary Institute of America in 1992. He was a US Marine and served in the Gulf War.

Accomplishments

Based on the food he served at the restaurant Artesia, Besh was named one of the “Best New Chefs” by Food & Wine magazine in 1999. In 2006, he received the James Beard Award for the category “Best Chef, South.” In 2008, Food Arts gave him the Silver Spoon Award for his dedication to breathing new life into New Orleans cuisine.

Besh starred in the cooking shows Chef John Besh’s New Orleans and Chef John Besh’s Family Table. He has also appeared in the Food Network shows Iron Chef America, Top Chef, and Top Chef Masters.

He is the author of the best-selling cookbooks My Family Table: A Passionate Plea for Home Cooking, Cooking From The Heart: My Favorite Lessons Learned Along the Way, My New Orleans: The Cookbook, and Besh Big Easy: 101 Home-Cooked New Orleans Recipes.

In 2008, the Louisiana Restaurant Association named Besh the “Restaurateur of the Year” in recognition of his many contributions to the state’s culinary heritage