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Essence Virtual Events
  • 2 days ago
Nothing says New Orleans flavor like a perfectly made Po’ Boy, but who can craft the best one? In this live cook-off, top chefs and culinary challengers will go head-to-head, each putting their own unique spin on the classic New Orleans sandwich. From crispy shrimp to slow-roasted roast beef dripping with gravy, every bite will be judged on flavor, creativity, and authenticity.
Transcript
00:00:00We're talking po' boys.
00:00:02Now, we done already talked about dress versus not dress.
00:00:04We talked about the shrimp.
00:00:05We talked about the ketchup and the hot sauce.
00:00:07Make sure you don't get that wrong.
00:00:09OK.
00:00:09All right, so are y'all ready to meet the chefs of the day?
00:00:15Can I?
00:00:15Yeah, let's warm it up for them, everybody.
00:00:18All right.
00:00:19The first chef, chef number one, Chef Marion.
00:00:23Come on out.
00:00:26Chef Marion, where you at?
00:00:30Where you at?
00:00:32Where my song at?
00:00:34Oh, he had a song?
00:00:34Where the DJ at?
00:00:35We got songs to come on out here and have some fun.
00:00:37You know what I'm saying?
00:00:39Good afternoon.
00:00:40Good morning.
00:00:42Come on out, Marion.
00:00:43That's not just so you want to go back and do it again?
00:00:45Yeah, let's do it again.
00:00:46OK, let's try it one more time.
00:00:47Y'all said y'all weren't hyping.
00:00:48No.
00:00:54All right, here we go.
00:00:55Chef Kenneth, Chef Marlon, come on out.
00:01:00You did?
00:01:02They wrote it wrong for me then.
00:01:04Chef Marlon from Chicken's Kitchen in the house.
00:01:07Well, damn, people, how y'all doing, how y'all doing?
00:01:10And Chef Reagan, representing for the ladies.
00:01:15Hey, y'all.
00:01:17OK, are y'all excited?
00:01:19Yes.
00:01:20We're ready to go.
00:01:20You hear me?
00:01:21Absolutely.
00:01:21Who's going to win?
00:01:22Who's going to make the best homeboy?
00:01:24Yes, I am.
00:01:25It's her home.
00:01:26Yeah, you're representing for the ladies here.
00:01:27You better come from home.
00:01:28You better know it.
00:01:29OK, Tamad.
00:01:30Oh, all right, I want to also introduce you all to the judges
00:01:35for today, OK?
00:01:37Judge number one, Rob Cozzi.
00:01:40Y'all seen him on the internet.
00:01:42He's famous.
00:01:43I need the other burner.
00:01:44And he's funny.
00:01:46All right, we got Judge Reese in the house.
00:01:49Hey, Reese.
00:01:50And we got Judge Ashley.
00:01:53Welcome.
00:01:54Yes, Ashley.
00:01:56All right.
00:01:57And to moderate this lovely competition,
00:02:00we have the beautiful Kelly Brown in the building.
00:02:03Let's give it up for her.
00:02:05Awesome.
00:02:06OK, y'all have fun.
00:02:07Make sure y'all save me something to eat, OK?
00:02:09I got you, I got you, I got you.
00:02:11How y'all doing?
00:02:12What's up?
00:02:13All right, so we are talking for boys as our chefs.
00:02:16You ready?
00:02:17I want to test some of my locals on what
00:02:21you know about po'boys, OK?
00:02:23So how many people we have here from New Orleans?
00:02:27OK, any people, frequent visitors?
00:02:31This y'all first time, Vanessa?
00:02:33OK, OK, OK.
00:02:35All right, so when you leave the club back in the day,
00:02:40before Katrina, we would go to one place and get our po'boys.
00:02:45It was on the corner in Gentilly.
00:02:48I'm going to bring the mic to y'all when I'm ready.
00:02:51On three.
00:02:52One, two, three.
00:02:56Period.
00:02:57The best po'boys, unfortunately, they're not there anymore.
00:03:00But we got some good chefs here today that's going to.
00:03:03Yes, yes.
00:03:04So tell me, what are you guys focusing on today?
00:03:08What are you focusing on?
00:03:09Flavor more than anything, you know what I mean?
00:03:10I don't think I need that because I got my own.
00:03:11You don't need that.
00:03:12You got your own, OK, OK.
00:03:13So for anything about flavor, put a little twist on a strip po'boy.
00:03:18I don't think there's much of it.
00:03:19Yeah, but I have to use some more.
00:03:20It's good enough as is.
00:03:22Yeah, but we're going to add a little pizzazz to wake it up a little bit.
00:03:26A little pizzazz.
00:03:26OK, and so we're focusing on what makes a good po'boy today
00:03:30and then who makes a great po'boy here on stage.
00:03:36I know y'all are ready.
00:03:37I've had most of your food before.
00:03:39Are we starting or no?
00:03:40I think we're getting ready to start.
00:03:42We're getting ready to start.
00:03:43So I'll ask you guys some questions as you start to kind of like get things moving.
00:03:47You all have your own take on po'boys.
00:03:49But what would you say makes for a classic and true po'boy?
00:03:53The bread.
00:03:55So, yeah, it's all about the bread.
00:03:56You know what I'm talking about?
00:03:57If your bread trash, you can't have no fire po'boy.
00:04:01Do y'all agree?
00:04:03Because you can't get that little French bread that sell at Rouss' and call it a po'boy.
00:04:07That ain't what we get at the corner store.
00:04:10And now I ain't in the city no more.
00:04:12I got to go to the Vietnamese spots that sell to buy meat.
00:04:17Don't phone because they got the same strategy.
00:04:19They learned from the French too.
00:04:20So that's the closest French bread you can get outside the city.
00:04:23So if y'all want to make po'boys back at home, wherever y'all from,
00:04:27go ahead and find your little restaurant that sell to buy meat and get five loaves.
00:04:30They're going to look at you crazy.
00:04:32But tell me, no, I need five loaves so I can make this po'boy recipe.
00:04:36Because if you get the wrong bread, it could be used as a weapon.
00:04:42It is going to be so hard.
00:04:43It's going to scratch up all the top of your gums.
00:04:45It's not even worth it, especially if you get a hot sausage, po'boys.
00:04:49Oh, the wrong bread will kill it.
00:04:51You really have to fight it.
00:04:52Like, you would have to fight to eat it, right?
00:04:54So next chef, tell me what do you think makes for a great po'boy?
00:05:00Next chef.
00:05:00I believe that's you.
00:05:01Oh, that's me.
00:05:02Yes, ma'am.
00:05:04I'm over here focused.
00:05:05I'm sorry, y'all.
00:05:06What was the question?
00:05:07So tell me, what do you think makes for a classic and a true po'boy?
00:05:12A classic and a true po'boy is one that tastes good, first of all.
00:05:19Bread is soft, but gives you all flavor.
00:05:23Okay, I've been eating po'boys my whole life between an oyster, shrimp, roast beef.
00:05:32It can be sloppy.
00:05:34Gotta be sloppy.
00:05:35The sloppier the better, right?
00:05:36Believe it. Believe it.
00:05:38Whatever it takes to give you all that flavor, that's what you want.
00:05:43Good mayonnaise, extra mayonnaise for me.
00:05:47So what is your favorite po'boy?
00:05:49My favorite po'boy is anything with shrimp.
00:05:52Okay.
00:05:53So I love a good shrimp po'boy.
00:05:55Okay, okay.
00:05:55So today my take is on a shrimp po'boy.
00:05:57Oh, nice.
00:05:58Dressed or?
00:05:59Dressed, definitely.
00:06:01For those of us who like tomatoes and lettuce and all those things.
00:06:05So I'm elevating just a little bit today.
00:06:08Beautiful.
00:06:08I love that.
00:06:09I can't wait to taste it.
00:06:10I'm excited.
00:06:11Okay, so we have an owner of Chicken's Kitchen.
00:06:14What do you think makes for a true po'boy?
00:06:17What is your favorite?
00:06:19What are you looking for?
00:06:20Off the rip, if you're looking for a po'boy, you got to go with a high sausage.
00:06:25You got to do the high sausage.
00:06:26You got to do a dress.
00:06:28You got to add mayonnaise on and American cheese and a little mustard.
00:06:32And that's what anybody visiting New Orleans for the first time,
00:06:36you got to try the high sausage off the rip.
00:06:38If you can handle the heat.
00:06:40If they can handle the heat.
00:06:42Just a little.
00:06:42You still got to.
00:06:44You got to go for it.
00:06:44I believe you.
00:06:45You got to go for it.
00:06:46Either way it go.
00:06:46You hear me?
00:06:47So I heard from one of our audience members, my mother-in-law,
00:06:50she said the old school way is butter and pickles.
00:06:57An oyster po'boy has to have butter and pickles because oysters are delicate, right?
00:07:05And hot sauce.
00:07:06Hot sauce?
00:07:07Butter, pickle, and hot sauce.
00:07:08That's all you need.
00:07:09Because oysters are so delicate.
00:07:12The bread will swallow it up and then it's like you're eating the bread sandwich.
00:07:16Now, what about the old school way when the funds are kind of low?
00:07:21I'm going to tell you, the people that are from here.
00:07:23If the funds are kind of low and you still want a po'boy, you could get a french fry.
00:07:28French fries with that gravy on it.
00:07:29And guess what you could do to put on it to make it a little fancy?
00:07:34Gravy.
00:07:35A little gravy from the roast beef.
00:07:36You can't afford the roast beef, but you can put the gravy on it.
00:07:39There you go.
00:07:40It's going to taste just the same.
00:07:41No belly left behind.
00:07:42It's a po'boy.
00:07:43Sometimes you be po'.
00:07:45Those days come.
00:07:46All right, so tell me, what are you hooking up, Chef Kenny?
00:07:50I am doing a fish and shrimp po'boy to pay homage to the Six Ward po'boys.
00:07:56I used to get on North Johnson and Roman back in the day.
00:07:59North Johnson and Governor Nichols and Espinay.
00:08:02So I'm going to do a little twist to that.
00:08:03You know what I'm saying?
00:08:04Got a little Vietnamese twist to it and that there.
00:08:07A little something different.
00:08:08Guess what, if he's taking our stuff and putting...
00:08:10I mean, you know, one hand wash the other.
00:08:13Is this red fish?
00:08:14It's our speckled trout.
00:08:15You know, it's summertime in the city, so we got some speckled trout with it, yeah.
00:08:18So you're going to fry it up?
00:08:19Oh yeah, fry all that up, make it nice and fire.
00:08:22I heard somebody don't like tomatoes on their po'boys.
00:08:26One of our judges, no tomatoes?
00:08:27No tomatoes for me either.
00:08:29I know.
00:08:30Hey, I'm at...
00:08:35Right.
00:08:36No, I ain't got no onions in you, baby.
00:08:38Not on no po'boy.
00:08:40You said not typical.
00:08:42Yeah.
00:08:42No, no, no.
00:08:43Can you get a good po'boy?
00:08:44I want all my chefs to ask this.
00:08:46Can you get a good po'boy from a restaurant?
00:08:49From a real restaurant?
00:08:50Is it a po'boy restaurant?
00:08:53I just feel like you got to go to a corner store.
00:08:56You got to go to the hood.
00:08:57I'm sorry.
00:08:58I think to get a po'boy, it got to be wrapped in paper.
00:09:00If it's not wrapped in paper, it's not a po'boy.
00:09:02And if the bread sitting on top all hard, it's not meshed together, it's a problem.
00:09:07You got to add it.
00:09:08All right, so I want you guys to tell me what are some of the key ingredients that you all are
00:09:12putting in your po'boys and tell me why.
00:09:15We'll go from this end to the next.
00:09:16Shrimp, because that's the competition.
00:09:21So we got shrimp in there.
00:09:22That's your secret ingredient.
00:09:24I know you got some.
00:09:25Yeah, I got a secret, but if I tell you, then I'm going to add the keel.
00:09:28A little some mustard.
00:09:31Mustard in the batter.
00:09:33Oh, you're still asking.
00:09:34I told you it's a secret.
00:09:36Are you keeping it in your batter?
00:09:38We're doing it a little different.
00:09:39We're stepping it up some.
00:09:42I wanted to play with it a little bit.
00:09:45Something else that's special here in New Orleans.
00:09:48It's smoked sausage, preferably D&D, which is double D smoked sausage.
00:09:54So I made like a little smoked sausage jam to pair with the fried shrimp.
00:09:59You hear me?
00:09:59A little ramalai.
00:10:00That's something else that's special to the city.
00:10:02I made that.
00:10:03I got a few elements in here that I can't tell you that's proprietary.
00:10:07You hear me?
00:10:08But besides that, we got some lettuce.
00:10:10We're going to hold the tomato for a ride.
00:10:12You hear me?
00:10:12And of course, the bread.
00:10:15Of course, the bread.
00:10:16Ashley, you like your dress, Chef Ashley?
00:10:19Everything.
00:10:19Everything.
00:10:20What's your favorite po' boy?
00:10:23Really?
00:10:24I like the batter.
00:10:26If it's a batter, it has to be good.
00:10:28Because if the batter is going to be mushy and fried hard or regular?
00:10:32Fried hard.
00:10:33Fried hard.
00:10:34All right.
00:10:34Tell us what is, what are your key ingredients that you're putting into your place?
00:10:40Into my po' boy?
00:10:41Love.
00:10:42Love and my own signature savory low-sodium Cajun seasoning.
00:10:47The number one seasoning in the world for Cajun seasoning.
00:10:50Just the love.
00:10:51So y'all let me know.
00:10:52Y'all are judges.
00:10:53You know what I'm saying?
00:10:53We ain't doing no salt and pepper up in here.
00:10:55You can find it on kennettimple.com.
00:10:57You know what I'm saying?
00:10:58Spell it for us, Kenny.
00:10:59K-E-N-N-E-T-H-T-E-M-P-L-E.com.
00:11:06And then if y'all want some help with some fast meals, just go ahead and understand my QR code
00:11:11and learn about the last minute show.
00:11:13Okay.
00:11:13Okay.
00:11:1320-25 standing shirt.
00:11:15Yeah.
00:11:16That was smart.
00:11:16I mean, you know.
00:11:17That was smart.
00:11:19What about you?
00:11:19Tell me what are you putting in your po' boy and why.
00:11:22So I'm making a barbecue shrimp meatball po' boy.
00:11:27So I am currently, as you can see, I'm making my meatballs right now.
00:11:33I like that.
00:11:34And I, I, so I grew up in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
00:11:39We used to eat meatball subs all the time, right?
00:11:43And I absolutely love barbecue shrimp.
00:11:47So why not marry the two and make a, telling you, this is, this is some good eating right here.
00:11:53I see rosemary.
00:11:55Yes, honey.
00:11:56Greenery.
00:11:57She's around here having weddings and stuff.
00:11:58Yeah, yeah, yeah.
00:11:59Man, this is looking amazing.
00:12:00I'm creating flavor.
00:12:02So you said you grew up in Michigan.
00:12:03I grew up in Michigan.
00:12:04My mom and my dad are from New Orleans.
00:12:06I grew up here and there, but I'm from Ann Arbor.
00:12:09And so do you remember your first po' boy?
00:12:13I sure do.
00:12:13Tell us about it.
00:12:15At the Yale College Inn on Carrollton, I went down and my grandmother and I walked over
00:12:23and we had a shrimp po' boy with butter and pickles.
00:12:30And I was like, I'm hooked.
00:12:31I want it every day.
00:12:32Please give it to me.
00:12:33It's the best meal.
00:12:35Like it's the best.
00:12:36I mean, when you just need a pick me up, if you're hung over, if you're leaving the club.
00:12:40That's right.
00:12:40It is just a really good midday meal.
00:12:43And a daiquiri?
00:12:44Yes.
00:12:44A po' boy and a daiquiri?
00:12:46All right.
00:12:46Tell me, do you remember your first po' boy?
00:12:49I just joined the sixth ward, walking from my cousin's house and my AT&M house,
00:12:55going on Johnson and Espinay and Governor Nichols and ordering the hot sauces on French or hot
00:13:00sauces on bun.
00:13:02Cheese?
00:13:03Cheese on the hot sauces, absolutely.
00:13:04Yeah, you got to have that cheese, yeah.
00:13:05So that's my earliest memories.
00:13:07So that's why this is paying homage to growing up in the city.
00:13:10Did you get it dressed?
00:13:11Oh yeah, absolutely, yeah.
00:13:13I ain't doing no dry ass sandwich.
00:13:15Still was my English.
00:13:17Still was my English.
00:13:18Okay, you remember your first po' boy?
00:13:21Not at all.
00:13:22I can tell you it was at some corner store in the 7-1 and it was a high size is more likely.
00:13:28It was dressed, most likely.
00:13:31It had cheese on it, most likely.
00:13:33It had some corner store.
00:13:34That's all I knew.
00:13:35You hear me?
00:13:36What's the best time to eat a po' boy?
00:13:38When do you feel like, I know you moved away from the city,
00:13:42so when you come back, when do you feel like you start feeding for like a po' boy?
00:13:46It just depends on the day.
00:13:47You know, you got so much good food around here, you just got to go.
00:13:50But since I like hot sauces, I try to get that when it's cool off,
00:13:54I'm going inside to eat because I'm going to be sweating.
00:13:55That's why I got this headband on, you know.
00:13:58Do you guys ever get the cold cut po' boy?
00:14:03I ain't got no time for no deli meat on my po' boy.
00:14:05I don't know.
00:14:06I don't know what my mama here.
00:14:07That's a Subway sandwich.
00:14:08My mama got that all the time and I hated her for it.
00:14:11Ooh.
00:14:11She up in here somewhere, I hate cold cuts.
00:14:13Where my man at?
00:14:14She was just calling me.
00:14:15She probably looking for the stage right now.
00:14:18But yeah, mama, I hate you in your cold cut sandwich.
00:14:21Was it ham turkey?
00:14:22Do you remember ham and cheese turkey?
00:14:25No, the worst, lunch meat.
00:14:27She would do lunch meat, po' boys.
00:14:29Absolute worst.
00:14:30Lunch meat, yeah.
00:14:31Lunch meat with a little mustard on it.
00:14:33It got to be, if it's dressed and it kind of melts.
00:14:36I remember them days.
00:14:37Lunch meat.
00:14:38I can see it, I can see it, I can see it.
00:14:40So tell me what are you doing right now, Chef Kenneth?
00:14:42I'm just melting the butter because like we talked about traditionally,
00:14:45old school, I'm going to put a little butter on the bread
00:14:47that's going to bring everything together.
00:14:49So for our audience members, if they wanted to make themselves a po' boy,
00:14:53what would they need to get, basically, if they're in New Orleans
00:14:58and if they're not, because you're not here,
00:14:59so you know how to kind of like get your fix.
00:15:01What are some of the key things that they can get to make it taste like home?
00:15:06They need to get the bread, and then they need to go to kennettimple.com and go get that roast
00:15:10beef po' boy or one of my fried shrimp sandwiches, and they go ahead on and replicate
00:15:15it just like that though.
00:15:16And that seasoning.
00:15:16And that seasoning.
00:15:17You know what I'm saying?
00:15:18You want it like the city, you got to cook it like the city.
00:15:21Yeah, we don't spray away from tradition.
00:15:23Nah, nah.
00:15:23Don't put snowgrass in the gumbo, all that.
00:15:26If it ain't broke, don't fix it.
00:15:27We don't do that.
00:15:28Next, Chef, tell me if you had to give our audience members some tips,
00:15:32how would they make a good po' boy if they're not here in the city?
00:15:35Or if they're here?
00:15:36If they're here.
00:15:37So if you don't live here, a good substitute is a really good brioche bun.
00:15:43So if you took a brioche bun, and then you are able to find some shrimp, not already cooked shrimp.
00:15:50Please don't use already cooked shrimp.
00:15:55And then you get that shrimp, you season it up real good.
00:15:59Use a little cornmeal.
00:16:00I think one of my brothers is using cornmeal.
00:16:02Super important.
00:16:04You want to use cornmeal, not just flour all the time.
00:16:07That changes it up.
00:16:08And then have at it.
00:16:11Whatever you like on top of it.
00:16:12Just because somebody likes cheese on it, you can have cheese.
00:16:15You don't have to have cheese or whatever.
00:16:17It's your po' boy, especially if you're at home.
00:16:20But the bread, again, is the most important part.
00:16:22You want to get some good bread.
00:16:24So if you're not here, get some brioche bun.
00:16:27That'll work.
00:16:28Or like a French pastry, like we'll get a little baguette, but it got to be soft.
00:16:32But the baguette is hard.
00:16:33I know, I know.
00:16:34You got to be careful.
00:16:35You want soft bread.
00:16:37Are we seasoning our cornmeal, guys?
00:16:41Wait, what?
00:16:42We'll go from that end to the next.
00:16:44Are we seasoning the cornmeal or we just seasoning the meat?
00:16:47When it comes to fried food in general, I don't season my batter at all.
00:16:51I put all the seasoning on the protein.
00:16:54I learned that over time when you fry, you got too much seasoning in that batter.
00:16:57It can burn and make your food taste bitter.
00:17:00So we just season the protein.
00:17:01And naturally, the moisture as it goes through the protein,
00:17:05through whatever batter you put on it, it's going to naturally season that batter.
00:17:08So you don't really need none in it.
00:17:09And another thing is, you can burn all the flavor of what you're frying in the batter,
00:17:14and all you're left with is just salt.
00:17:15And you get a big salt bottle.
00:17:17So I don't season my flours at all.
00:17:19It's just plain flour, like this right here.
00:17:22I'm using this corn flour instead of cornmeal.
00:17:25It breaks down, you know, that cornmeal is kind of crunchy and weirding them out.
00:17:29So instead of doing that, we use corn flour.
00:17:31It's more broke down.
00:17:32It batters and it sticks easier, and it comes out with a better crust.
00:17:38I'm seasoning everything.
00:17:40Flour, eggs, milk, fish, shrimp, everything about to get hit with some love.
00:17:46And I ain't going to burn it.
00:17:50And you can always do it your own way in the kitchen, you hear me?
00:17:53Because that's the best thing about it.
00:17:54It's all about chemistry and how you do it, you dig?
00:17:58But you ain't lying no, Chef.
00:18:00If you over-seasoned, you could end up burning your oil.
00:18:02Absolutely.
00:18:03But as a restaurant owner, you can't be wasting that money on that oil and that pot.
00:18:05No, you cannot.
00:18:07Yeah.
00:18:07So wait, is it like ready, set, cook?
00:18:09Is it, is we going?
00:18:11Yeah, we going.
00:18:12What you doing?
00:18:13Talking too much.
00:18:14I mean, you cooking?
00:18:16Look like you cooking.
00:18:16We don't either.
00:18:17At least we got three mics.
00:18:18Look, he need a little more extra, he need extra, he need extra time.
00:18:23I can't serve the judges scales on the fish.
00:18:25That's what it is.
00:18:25He need extra time.
00:18:26Get in, baby, extra time.
00:18:28You roll your meatballs.
00:18:30And we're going to get it perky made.
00:18:31They are, the meatballs are meatballing.
00:18:34Trust me.
00:18:34We good to go over here.
00:18:36Hey, look, I can't even start.
00:18:37That's a great idea.
00:18:38Thank you, sir.
00:18:40I have a message, y'all.
00:18:41Thank you, sir.
00:18:43It's from one of our judges.
00:18:45No tomatoes or onions for Rob Kazi.
00:18:49I'm putting him on the way.
00:18:50Put him on the spot.
00:18:51Once again, Rob don't eat tomatoes.
00:18:53No tomatoes.
00:18:54All right, so I'm going to come down and talk to you, and we're going to talk about why.
00:18:56It's his fault.
00:18:57Oh, yeah.
00:18:58We can't.
00:18:58I'm going to come down.
00:19:03It's all right.
00:19:05Is it going down like this?
00:19:06Yeah, baby.
00:19:07All right.
00:19:08Let's have some more.
00:19:09What do you have against tomatoes and onions?
00:19:12What do you have against tomatoes and onions?
00:19:15I don't know.
00:19:15I just, I don't, I just never liked onions.
00:19:18And I, like, the older I get, I be more open-minded.
00:19:20So I tried it again.
00:19:21I still hate them.
00:19:23I can eat onions if it's, like, sauteed.
00:19:27It was, like, real thin.
00:19:28But those thick cut onions with the crunch, I hate it.
00:19:31Tomatoes, I just don't like the texture.
00:19:33They don't taste nasty.
00:19:34I actually ate a tomato, like, a week ago.
00:19:36I want a po' boy.
00:19:39No, look, it was by mistake, though.
00:19:41I was by mistake.
00:19:42I ain't do it on purpose.
00:19:43I was in my zone, flying, flying up there.
00:19:47And, yeah, by the time I realized they hit tomatoes on it,
00:19:50I was halfway through.
00:19:51And I was like, ah, it is what it is.
00:19:52But, nah, just the texture of tomatoes, I just don't really care for.
00:19:54But other than that, everything else on that po' boy, yeah, slap that on there.
00:19:58I need that.
00:19:58So do you have specifics for your po' boy?
00:20:02Tell us your name.
00:20:03Reese Jackson.
00:20:05Okay, Judge Reese, what do you like on your po' boy?
00:20:08I like ketchup and mustard, lettuce, and shrimp.
00:20:12That's it?
00:20:14If you couldn't get shrimp, what would you get?
00:20:16Cassie.
00:20:17Oh, okay.
00:20:19All right, Ashley and Chef Ashley.
00:20:21No cheese.
00:20:23I don't like no cheese, he said, no cheese.
00:20:26Tell me, what is your favorite po' boy, and what don't you like?
00:20:29I like everything.
00:20:30I'm an explorer of flavors, but like I said, my favorite one is the oyster po' boy fried
00:20:36hard, but I'll take everything online.
00:20:38He what?
00:20:39He ate onions too.
00:20:40Oh, he ate onions too.
00:20:42Chef, Judge Kazi found a friend on the onion train.
00:20:45No onions.
00:20:46So, Chef Ashley, what is like your favorite go-to po' boy then?
00:20:52My favorite go-to would be the oyster.
00:20:55As long as it's fried hard, I don't like extra mayo, but I do like a little bit.
00:20:59Hot sauce, and I'm good.
00:21:00Do you remember your first po' boy?
00:21:02Do you remember where you went in the city?
00:21:03Most likely it was jeez or hot sausage po' boy, because I grew up in the corner, so yeah.
00:21:08It brings tears to my eyes, because jeez, I know it's a bank.
00:21:12Something like that.
00:21:13They need to open back up.
00:21:15I mean, they could sell it at Rouse's, or we ain't got no sponsorship from Rouse's, but.
00:21:19You can't get the bread from Rouse's.
00:21:23Are you looking forward to these po' boys?
00:21:24Yes, I'm looking forward to all the po' boys.
00:21:26I'm a chef also, so now I get to eat without having to cook, so.
00:21:29Hey, you got the day off.
00:21:31All right.
00:21:31I want some questions from our audience members.
00:21:33Any questions?
00:21:34Anybody have anything they want to know about po' boys, our amazing chefs up there?
00:21:42You ain't got no questions?
00:21:45All right, we have a question.
00:21:50This is my 18th.
00:21:53My question would be, can y'all hear me?
00:21:57My question would be frozen shrimp versus fresh shrimps when doing seafood frying of any kind.
00:22:07Okay, so we're going to go with our chefs, and then we're going to come down to our judges.
00:22:11Frozen shrimp or fresh shrimp?
00:22:13I mean, obviously.
00:22:15I mean, obviously fresh, but when you're out buying it from the grocery store, it's all
00:22:18coming frozen anyway.
00:22:20Just so y'all know, it's all getting thawed at the grocery store.
00:22:22Still shrimp.
00:22:23But if you got your plug at the docks, you can always get it fresh.
00:22:27Yeah, on the West Bank, West Wego, you go to something like Zimmer's or American Seafood
00:22:31down there in the Seventh Wall.
00:22:33You can get you some fresh shrimp.
00:22:35Chef Reagan?
00:22:36Yeah, same.
00:22:37Like, if you don't have it, you got to do what you got to do, right?
00:22:41These shrimp were frozen, and I made a shrimp stock out of it, and I still am doing everything
00:22:48I need to.
00:22:48It's all about flavor, baby.
00:22:50So you don't have to have it.
00:22:52You got to make it do what it do, right?
00:22:54Tell us about your stock.
00:22:55How do you make your stock?
00:22:56So I took some of the shrimp, and I put some bay leaves, some garlic,
00:23:03a little bit of seafood boil, and now I got shrimp stock.
00:23:08Just like that.
00:23:09You do what you got.
00:23:10Do you do that for gumbo?
00:23:10Do you do that for gumbo, too?
00:23:12I'm sorry?
00:23:12Do you do that for your gumbo, too?
00:23:14Well, yes.
00:23:15I always make my own stock, but I use heads.
00:23:18Yeah, so I use my heads, I bake my heads, then after I bake my heads, and then I,
00:23:25because I roast them to get that flavor out of them.
00:23:27Make sure you clean them good, because you won't, you know, and then after you do all of that,
00:23:31let it ride.
00:23:32I mean, I let mine ride for about an hour, maybe two.
00:23:35On low.
00:23:36Yeah.
00:23:36You let them flavors come up, come about onions, beer, bay leaves, whatever you got.
00:23:45All right, Chef Marlin, fresh or frozen shrimp doesn't really make a difference.
00:23:50Oh, I got hurt to everybody, hurt to everybody's feelings in the audience,
00:23:54but ain't no such thing as fresh shrimp, if you ain't catching yourself.
00:23:57That's right.
00:23:57Just because of state regulation, every shrimp that you buy,
00:24:01was previously frozen, then they defrosted it to sell it to you.
00:24:06So it's all the same, fresh or frozen.
00:24:09It's all about preparation and how you cook it.
00:24:11The most important thing with shrimp, it's not overcooking it, you know what I mean?
00:24:14And you won't get a great product.
00:24:15Most shrimp, no matter what size it is, only take like a minute or two.
00:24:20Whatever the preparation is, gumbo, fried, sauteed, a couple minutes and it's done.
00:24:25As long as the preparation is right and you're seasoning it good, you're going to be straight, fresh or frozen.
00:24:30All right, so any more questions from our audience?
00:24:33Yeah, don't be shy.
00:24:34Yeah, don't be shy.
00:24:35All right, tell me your question and then, tell me your name and then your question.
00:24:41What's up, everybody?
00:24:42My name is Shamar coming from the Bay Area.
00:24:45Nothing beats a po' boy, but when y'all are outside of New Orleans, what's a sandwich you look out for?
00:24:50What's a different sandwich style that you get excited about?
00:24:53What's another sandwich you get excited about if you're not in New Orleans, but you kind of want that same feel?
00:25:01Well, she's from the Bay Area.
00:25:04So before you leave, pack you a box and take us with you.
00:25:09Listen, like I told y'all, I grew up in Michigan and we never missed anything.
00:25:13So before we left, we packed a box of shrimp, we packed a box of fish, we packed, my grandmother would
00:25:19stuff our peppers, and we would freeze it, and we would have it all year long, gumbo.
00:25:24So call you somebody, have them make you some stuff, pack you a box, and carry it on that plane, baby.
00:25:31All right, Chef Reagan.
00:25:32Chef Marlon, what's your favorite sandwich to get outside of New Orleans?
00:25:37Oh, that's a good-ass question.
00:25:41I don't know.
00:25:41I don't really like sandwiches.
00:25:43So if it's not, and I'm not even that impressed about Bull Boys, if you're being honest.
00:25:47I mean, I think that's because that's a wealth of excess thing.
00:25:51Look at that, girl.
00:25:51Like, I'm so used to having it that I'm not pressed behind it.
00:25:55So if I had to pick a sandwich, not to be basic, but I'd pick a burger.
00:25:59A burger.
00:26:00I mean, burgers are classic.
00:26:01Burgers are, you can do a lot with them.
00:26:03Smash burgers or regular burgers?
00:26:04Like, smash burgers are new craze by night, but they are delicious.
00:26:09I'm trying to watch my language.
00:26:11I almost use some words.
00:26:11Be yourself.
00:26:13But burgers are good, you know what I mean?
00:26:14So if I had to pick a sandwich, it'll be a burger.
00:26:17All right, Chef Kennan.
00:26:18What's your go-to sandwich if you're not in the city and you just kind of want that place?
00:26:22I cannot hear you.
00:26:23What?
00:26:25What's your go-to sandwich?
00:26:27If you're not in the city, what's your go-to sandwich?
00:26:30Go-to sandwich?
00:26:30Always hot sauce is on French, you know what I'm talking about?
00:26:33I need that with that cheese.
00:26:34I need it good.
00:26:35I miss the way G's used to hook it up.
00:26:37Well, what if you can't get that?
00:26:38If I can't get it, roast beef, not the city.
00:26:42I'm going to make it.
00:26:44If I can't make it, I'm just going to go get me a by me.
00:26:49Okay.
00:26:49I'm going to go get me a by me.
00:26:51Because, I mean, it's just like a po' boy, but it got the cucumbers, the carrots, and the cilantro,
00:26:56and it's still got that fresh texture that po' boys that we normally get from down here.
00:27:00All right, our judges, what's your go-to sandwich if you cannot get a po' boy?
00:27:03Honestly, I don't like sandwich.
00:27:05You got the tip yet?
00:27:07I don't really like that.
00:27:07Oh, yeah, be sure.
00:27:07Be sure.
00:27:08Be sure.
00:27:09And I'm not being for a po' boy.
00:27:11See how much I can put up with him?
00:27:13I get some new sandwich.
00:27:15Bougie.
00:27:17All right, Judge Reese, what's your favorite sandwich if you're not in the world?
00:27:20Which, how old are you?
00:27:22In the whole seven years of your life, what's your favorite sandwich?
00:27:27Fourteen?
00:27:28My favorite sandwich is a po' boy.
00:27:30That went real quick.
00:27:31What if you can't get a po' boy?
00:27:33I'm like, wait, what?
00:27:34Fourteen minutes?
00:27:35Do you have a question?
00:27:37When you are in New Orleans, if you make a po' boy, do not use popcorn shrimp.
00:27:47Y'all heard it straight from the babe's mouth, don't use popcorn.
00:27:51Why don't you like popcorn shrimp?
00:27:53They're too small.
00:27:54Popcorn shrimp?
00:27:55Where that going at?
00:27:56What do you say, why?
00:27:57Popcorn shrimp.
00:27:58They're too small.
00:27:59Don't use popcorn shrimp.
00:28:00Who had that idea?
00:28:01I don't think that's a real thing.
00:28:03Somebody did it to this baby.
00:28:05Gave him a little baby shrimp po' boy.
00:28:07Well, you ain't going to get that today.
00:28:09They ruin people's childhood and lifestyle like that.
00:28:11That ain't kosher.
00:28:12All right, Judge Rob, what is your favorite sandwich if you can't get a po' boy?
00:28:17I'm with him.
00:28:18I'm throwing a burger.
00:28:19Like that's my second book date.
00:28:21A burger, a barbecue burger with some bacon on it, with the pickles and yeah.
00:28:26Dockered up, fried some pepper jack cheese, medium well, yeah.
00:28:30Press?
00:28:31Huh?
00:28:32That's no tomato.
00:28:33Yeah, no tomato.
00:28:33That's it, no tomato.
00:28:34Don't press.
00:28:38They put the tomatoes on it, you lose your tip.
00:28:40You don't get the tip.
00:28:41I'm at the restaurant, I see the tomatoes eat a long tip.
00:28:44Do we have any more questions from the audience?
00:28:46Any more questions?
00:28:47Okay, okay.
00:28:49I'll come right back to you.
00:28:51So can somebody explain the concept of what it means to be a fully dressed po' boy?
00:28:57Fully dressed.
00:28:59Which one of y'all, she wants to know what is behind this concept of having a fully dressed po' boy?
00:29:05Let me get that question again.
00:29:08What's the kind, like what is the concept of having a fully dressed po' boy?
00:29:12All right, fully dressed, you hear me?
00:29:14We're talking about mayonnaise, we're talking about lettuce, we're talking tomato.
00:29:19Pickle.
00:29:20And that's it, you hear me?
00:29:21That's the three basics.
00:29:22Pickle.
00:29:22And then anything extra.
00:29:24Mayo, yeah.
00:29:24Mayo, lettuce, tomato.
00:29:27And then you're doing extra when you're doing ketchup, hot sauce, stuff like that.
00:29:31All that, you got to be specific when you're ordering all those extra names.
00:29:34But just the basic dress, lettuce, tomato, mayo.
00:29:38It's dressed like you from hand to toe, you dress.
00:29:40Like you got everything, you got all of it on.
00:29:43Everything.
00:29:43Jewelry.
00:29:44Draws on that sandwich.
00:29:45Everything, everything.
00:29:46All right, we're going to go to our next question.
00:29:50My name is Judy.
00:29:51I have a question for the judges.
00:29:52I want to know what are the judges looking for today and what are you most excited about?
00:30:01What happened?
00:30:03I missed it.
00:30:04It wasn't a...
00:30:10Oh, what am I looking forward to?
00:30:11I think the most obvious answer is eating.
00:30:14I purposely didn't eat this morning, so y'all got to come with it.
00:30:18I said, I'm going to save some money.
00:30:19I'm going to come eat here.
00:30:20So this is my meal for the day.
00:30:22So hopefully make enough that I can bring a little something home.
00:30:25And speaking of shrimp, you just said this one thing.
00:30:28So the restaurant owners, I don't know if it's a timing thing,
00:30:31the people peeling it, whatever.
00:30:32But when you make the process or whatever, stop leaving the tails on the shrimp.
00:30:37I hate having a picket.
00:30:38Oh, why they do it?
00:30:40They do that so it does shrimp in the pyramid.
00:30:43So it looks like it's more than what it is.
00:30:50I don't care about the flood, none of that.
00:30:53I can explain the two reasons why restaurants do it.
00:30:56One reason they do it is to make the shrimp look bigger.
00:30:58With the tail on it, it looks bigger.
00:31:00You dig?
00:31:01You dig?
00:31:01In the second one, I'm losing my train of thought right now and I forgot what it was.
00:31:05It makes the plate look better.
00:31:07Well, they don't even do it.
00:31:08Is there something better to want to say?
00:31:10Yeah, it's the presentation.
00:31:11It's the presentation.
00:31:11I don't know why I was facing that.
00:31:13Presentation, it looked better.
00:31:14It does look better, but it's not functional.
00:31:17So a lot of the food I make and I cook is about making it as easy to get from the plate to your mouth.
00:31:23You know what I mean?
00:31:24So for me, most of the time when I cook anything, it's functional.
00:31:27It's not too fancy.
00:31:28It's not too extra just so you can eat the food and enjoy it without putting too much work in it.
00:31:33We came here to eat, not to work.
00:31:34Facts.
00:31:35Facts.
00:31:36So when they did it last night, they lost a tip too.
00:31:40Let me stop joking like that.
00:31:41Y'all be tipping people, y'all right?
00:31:42Just in case y'all don't want y'all frowning down at me.
00:31:45I tip appropriately.
00:31:48Got another question over here, B.
00:31:49You got it?
00:31:50Okay.
00:31:51Speaking of, I want to give you a chance.
00:31:53What are you looking for?
00:31:55Eat.
00:31:55So a lot of eat is more than eat.
00:31:56They're finding no good.
00:31:59Yeah, y'all wanting the same.
00:32:00Where's my next question?
00:32:01Okay.
00:32:02Speaking of presentation, are we going to have some black people glitter?
00:32:06Y'all know what black people glitter is?
00:32:08Parsley, sprinkle a little black people glitter.
00:32:12How y'all doing?
00:32:13So this is food and wine.
00:32:14We're talking about po' boys.
00:32:15What do y'all like to pair?
00:32:17What drink do you like to pair your po' boy with?
00:32:23Good old-fashioned beer.
00:32:27Good old-fashioned beer.
00:32:28You can't have it.
00:32:29I mean, you can have it with like a cold drink or something like that.
00:32:32But if you don't have a good po' boy with a good cup of beer,
00:32:35good ice-cold, like having the Dama Lisa's.
00:32:38You know, have you been to Dama Lisa's?
00:32:40Has anybody been?
00:32:40If you haven't been to Dama Lisa's, you're cheating yourself.
00:32:43Go over to Dama Lisa's.
00:32:44They got the little cups of beer that go with their po' boys.
00:32:48Nothing better.
00:32:49Nothing better.
00:32:50What are you drinking with your po' boy, Chef Marlon?
00:32:52Daggering.
00:32:53You got to have a daggering.
00:32:54I think if I'm eating a po' boy, you're looking to do something casual.
00:32:57I don't drink beer.
00:32:59I don't drink much at all.
00:33:01But if I had to choose something to drink with a po' boy, it would be a dagger.
00:33:05All right, Chef Kenny, what are you drinking with your po' boy?
00:33:07I'm sorry, I'm making a homemade mayonnaise right now.
00:33:14I mean, and we really can't hear.
00:33:17What are you drinking with your po' boy?
00:33:19What you drinking with your po' boy?
00:33:20What I'm drinking with my po' boy, a pineapple big shot.
00:33:24Okay, I was waiting for the big shot.
00:33:26Pineapple, peach, you got to be a big shot.
00:33:29All right, we have another question.
00:33:30Tell me your name and then tell me where you're from.
00:33:32Is that working?
00:33:33It's not a plug-in.
00:33:33My name is Dennis.
00:33:34I'm from Oklahoma City.
00:33:35Home of the NBA champions, Oklahoma City Thunder.
00:33:39Yeah, really.
00:33:43With your roast beef po' boy, what about the gravy with it?
00:33:48Do you consider it a good po' boy with the gravy or without the gravy?
00:33:52All right, so my chefs, Chef Marlon, we're going to start with you.
00:33:55For the roast beef, gravy or no gravy?
00:34:02What's the question?
00:34:03The answer is so obvious.
00:34:05I was having a hard time not answering that.
00:34:06My man said he's from Oklahoma City.
00:34:07It got to be gravy.
00:34:08It's not even a po' boy without the gravy on it.
00:34:11Like, what are we doing?
00:34:12We not up north?
00:34:13Because then that's like a pole cut.
00:34:13We're in the south.
00:34:14We got to put some gravy in there.
00:34:16You there?
00:34:17Chef Reagan, you doing gravy or no gravy on your roast beef?
00:34:20Oh, definitely gravy.
00:34:21Extra sloppy.
00:34:22Extra.
00:34:23You see what I just did there?
00:34:24Extra.
00:34:25Extra.
00:34:26Chef Kenny?
00:34:27This is sloppy.
00:34:28Thank you, boo.
00:34:29Gravy or no gravy?
00:34:31Extra gravy.
00:34:31Extra gravy.
00:34:33All right.
00:34:33Extra gravy, Oklahoma City.
00:34:34Extra gravy.
00:34:35Extra gravy.
00:34:36And you got to get mayonnaise, because once the mayonnaise marry with the gravy, y'all.
00:34:42All right.
00:34:42Tell me your name and where you're from.
00:34:44Chef Bigfellow from Houston, Texas.
00:34:47Hey.
00:34:48Hey, pal.
00:34:49What up, Chef?
00:34:50Hey.
00:34:51All chefs, I want to ask a question out there.
00:34:55What got you into cooking?
00:34:57What inspired you to become a chef?
00:34:59And where did you start?
00:35:02All three.
00:35:03Okay, I'll go first.
00:35:04I can't hear the question.
00:35:05What inspired you to become a chef?
00:35:07Chef, uh, off the rip was survival.
00:35:11When I was in college, the one way I saved money and to watch my diet, because I played sports,
00:35:15was to cook for myself.
00:35:17And I was blessed enough to where Instagram got created right when I was towards my most
00:35:24chef-expired meals.
00:35:26So I would cook and just post it on social media to show off.
00:35:30And that birthed my first catering opportunity.
00:35:34And at that moment, I was just finished football.
00:35:36I decided I didn't want to play no more.
00:35:38That was a long shot to make it to the league anyways, but I just wanted to redirect my life.
00:35:43And that was like one of the most hardest, difficult things that I ever did in my life
00:35:48at that point.
00:35:49But it was gratifying and rewarding at the end of the day.
00:35:52And from that day moving forward, I started professionally.
00:35:57I started cooking from the home first, from my career first.
00:35:59And I would sell plates.
00:36:01And then, uh, from selling those plates, I would get other catering opportunities,
00:36:05two of these weddings, birthday parties, stuff like that.
00:36:07And then, um, 2020 is when we, uh, I would do a lemonade day with my kids, uh, every year.
00:36:16And that grew expansive to the point where we had 90 cars in line,
00:36:21waiting for us to open up our lemonade day.
00:36:23And that's when I made the jump from the house to a brick and mortar.
00:36:28I was always afraid of, it's a massive undertaking to have a brick and mortar.
00:36:34But I knew with the support we had, we could survive.
00:36:37And thankfully enough, we have, we've been striving ever since we opened up September 11, 2020.
00:36:42Um, since then, we've made top 50 in America and New York Times.
00:36:48Last year, I was nominated for a James Greer award.
00:36:50Yeah.
00:36:51Um, hey.
00:36:51And it's all been a pleasure.
00:36:53I mean, a lot of it is just community, uh, supported, community-based.
00:36:58And I give back to our community as much as I can.
00:37:01Uh, for anybody in the audience, um, we, we feed kids for free every day, Monday through Friday.
00:37:08At both of my restaurants, because we have two now.
00:37:10One's called The Coop.
00:37:12From 6.30 to 10.30.
00:37:13You can feed your kids from 6.30 to 10.30 at The Coop.
00:37:17And the address is 10.30 Durbanee.
00:37:19For lunch at Chicken's Kitchen, it's from 10.30 until 3 o'clock.
00:37:24You can feed your kids.
00:37:25You don't have to purchase nothing.
00:37:27Excuse me.
00:37:31Excuse me again.
00:37:32It don't matter how many kids you have.
00:37:33You can have two.
00:37:34You can have 10.
00:37:35Bring them through.
00:37:36Feed them.
00:37:36We're doing it all the way.
00:37:38It's a school stop.
00:37:39Because you have a lot of kids.
00:37:40I do have a lot of kids.
00:37:43Thankfully for my kids, they are blessed.
00:37:45They're in a better situation than a lot of kids are.
00:37:47But I didn't forget to look around at what's going on in my community and just give back.
00:37:51And I love that because of your kids.
00:37:53You know how important it is.
00:37:54Yeah, I know it's important.
00:37:55Because I, one of the things that motivated me to open a restaurant too,
00:37:59was when we went out to eat.
00:38:01It wasn't a lot of affordable options that wasn't deep fried.
00:38:05It was hard to find any vegetable options for our kids.
00:38:08So, I wanted to structure a menu.
00:38:10What options besides the typical deep fried.
00:38:15We in the South, so that's what we got.
00:38:17You know what I mean?
00:38:18But I wanted to create a few more options and affordable options for the community.
00:38:21Is there any mayonnaise back?
00:38:25What was the question?
00:38:25What was that?
00:38:26Oh, that ain't for us.
00:38:27Oh, we relocated it right now on the West Bank.
00:38:30Yes.
00:38:31It's only about seven to ten minutes away.
00:38:33Right across the street.
00:38:34People in the city act like it's two hours away.
00:38:36Right here.
00:38:36But that's what we in Greta.
00:38:37Yeah.
00:38:37Both of the restaurants are on the same street.
00:38:39One's on 11th street.
00:38:40One's on 7th street.
00:38:41And they're always packed.
00:38:43One's on the right side, one's on the left side.
00:38:45If you're confused, you're looking for somebody standing outside the line.
00:38:48And that's where our restaurant is.
00:38:50There's going to be a line.
00:38:50But let me tell you, I've been to the restaurant several times.
00:38:53What I love about Chef Marlin's restaurant is there is a line, but there's chairs.
00:39:00Yeah.
00:39:00Yeah.
00:39:00There's chairs in the line, so you don't have to stand up.
00:39:03That really did it for me.
00:39:04I was like, oh my gosh, I could come here all the time.
00:39:07I try not to forget what we do is provide a service.
00:39:10So we do have chairs outside.
00:39:11We have some music playing outside.
00:39:13We try to make the experience as best as possible.
00:39:16We try to be as fast as possible and create an entire experience.
00:39:20Chef Reagan, tell me a little bit about your story.
00:39:22How did you get here?
00:39:52Do you need the oven?
00:40:01No.
00:40:01Sure.
00:40:02Is it on?
00:40:03No, it's good.
00:40:04I'm coming here.
00:40:06It's because I was in the room before.
00:40:10You told me you could go forward and do something that I don't normally do.
00:40:15I have two and three.
00:40:20Neither one of them are in the room.
00:40:23But I set that up and look at today.
00:40:27I have 1,600, 1,700 people that applied to that master show.
00:40:32Out of all those people, they brought 80 people to LA.
00:40:36Out of those 80 people, they brought 20 on the show.
00:40:39Out of those 20, I was number four at 45 years old.
00:40:45So don't tell me what God won't do in your life.
00:40:49We will pay literally for congratulations if you come to school.
00:40:53That's my story.
00:40:55Amen.
00:40:56Your gift made room for you.
00:40:57I'm so excited.
00:40:58Chef Kenneth, I know you working.
00:41:01He's out there working.
00:41:04Can you tell us a little bit about your journey?
00:41:06So I didn't grow up in my grandmama's kitchen.
00:41:10Upon graduating from high school, they asked that great question.
00:41:13So what are you going to do with your life after?
00:41:15I said, oh, I should probably figure that out.
00:41:18So Nickel State came to my high school.
00:41:21They had a culinary program.
00:41:23I knew I couldn't go to Delgado because all I was going to do was play.
00:41:25So I ended up going to culinary school, got into the kitchen, and it felt natural.
00:41:29And once I stepped in there, the rest is kind of history.
00:41:32So I learned Louisiana Creole food in college to cook it after spending all my life eating it.
00:41:39But I was a regular kid chasing girls, getting dirty, getting funky, all that stuff.
00:41:43I wasn't one of these master chefs or young talents tasting food and critiquing it.
00:41:48You know, now they're just a regular kid.
00:41:50Now, one thing I've noticed about each of your stories, even our judges, is social media.
00:41:56How much of an impact does social media play?
00:41:59And what about if someone's just afraid?
00:42:01Like if they're like, ah, nobody's following me, nobody's looking.
00:42:03How do you embark upon?
00:42:05If you don't put yourself out there, nobody will ever find you.
00:42:08You know, I was a private chef for like six years cooking for celebrities,
00:42:12professional athletes and all of that.
00:42:14And it's like, well, I'm a dope chef to this client, but nobody in the world knows me.
00:42:18So I have to step out so I can be known.
00:42:20And doing that gave me this opportunity to be rocking in front of y'all right now.
00:42:23So you can't be scared.
00:42:24You got to step up out there like Rob.
00:42:27I'm on ESPN.
00:42:28I said, I know they ain't Rob about to do this thing with the Saints.
00:42:30I said, this got to be fake.
00:42:32Great job.
00:42:34Tell us about your social media journey, just in terms of if you have a gift,
00:42:38because we all have gifts in here.
00:42:40How do you kind of like catapult that to the public eye on social media?
00:42:46Consistency.
00:42:47And I know it sounds cliche, but it's true.
00:42:49Consistency.
00:42:50And like she said, faith.
00:42:51Like just having faith.
00:42:52Like this was not what I've seen for my life.
00:42:57Like I started off doing music.
00:42:58I was a rapper.
00:42:59That's all I could see.
00:43:00Comedy.
00:43:01That's no, that's not doing that.
00:43:03But God had different plans.
00:43:04But I had, I had faith that I was going to be somebody.
00:43:08And I put the stuff out there.
00:43:09Consistency.
00:43:10A lot of days I want to give up.
00:43:11I'm not getting the views.
00:43:12I'm not getting the engagement.
00:43:14Might do it a little high ease and kind of fall back.
00:43:17And then I, ah.
00:43:17And then put that, that, that drive and that hunger for it kept pulling me back in it.
00:43:21And the consistency.
00:43:23And then that was in what, 2014.
00:43:262014 I started doing it.
00:43:282018 I had a little viral moment to where I kind of started getting a lot of followers.
00:43:34And as of last year truly is when I started truly reaping the financial benefits of my dreams.
00:43:41So it takes time.
00:43:43Like just consistency, faith, trust, and a grind.
00:43:47You got to have some type, you got to have it in you to want to do it.
00:43:50Or you will give up.
00:43:53And, and I know this young man.
00:43:55I told my wife, you don't feed me that good.
00:43:57How the way his mom be cooking for him.
00:43:59I said, ma'am, my wife don't feed me that good.
00:44:01And I know Ashley, because she was out there, let that girl cook.
00:44:04And then she making shrimp, shrimp burgers for Kendrick Lamar.
00:44:07So that exposure on social media is real.
00:44:10Because everybody in your local city can know you.
00:44:13But now everybody in the world can know you.
00:44:15Yeah, it's, it's the best way to kind of get out.
00:44:17Are you on social media?
00:44:19Tell me, do you, what do you post on your social?
00:44:21Tell me, of me, eat.
00:44:25You talk about the food or you just like show it?
00:44:27I present it.
00:44:29Tell me how you present it.
00:44:31So my mama said, home get reached.
00:44:33And I said, oh, I'm sorry, mama.
00:44:37Tell me again.
00:44:38All right, Chef Ashley, known on social media as let that girl cook.
00:44:55Tell me how your social media has helped you.
00:44:57And how important is it if you cook, if you sew, if you do makeup, to kind of like catapult your business.
00:45:04I would piggyback off of what Rob said as far as consistency.
00:45:08I'm a person, I don't like a lot of attention, which is crazy because I did a lot because of what I do.
00:45:13I don't know if I do, but.
00:45:14Smoke science is a jam.
00:45:16Oh, all right.
00:45:17But social media changed my life.
00:45:18I was scared to put stuff online, like Rob said, the consistency.
00:45:22But once people started seeing like my personality and like the difference between me and the other local New Orleans chefs,
00:45:27that's when I just catapulted, got on TV feeding a whole bunch of celebrities and kind of became one of myself.
00:45:32Excuse me, Chef.
00:45:33Judge Reese, what are you looking to do with your social media?
00:45:39What's your dream?
00:45:41My dream is to be like Will Smith.
00:45:45You want to be an actor?
00:45:46Yeah.
00:45:49Look, we have Judge Reese's mama.
00:45:50What'd you say?
00:45:51He came to me and told me that, and I didn't want to be dismissive.
00:45:55And I said, okay, and we started.
00:45:58Beautiful.
00:45:58I love that.
00:45:59So I want to switch it up a little bit, y'all.
00:46:01What, I want to ask you guys, what comes to mind when you think of New Orleans flavors?
00:46:06We're going to start with our judges.
00:46:07We're going to start with our chefs, and then we're going to come down to our judges.
00:46:10Flavor.
00:46:11Flavor.
00:46:12And more flavor.
00:46:14I'm telling you, being outside the city, you know, everybody just don't know what this left to right seasoning really means, you know, to put that love in it.
00:46:21And I mean, like I always tell people, soul food isn't soul food because it's fried chicken, mac and cheese, and all that.
00:46:26Soul food is soul food because you can taste the love when somebody prepared it in you.
00:46:30I don't care if somebody makes you a fire peanut butter and jelly sandwich, and they made that thing with love, you're going to be like, you was jiffy today?
00:46:37You know what I'm saying?
00:46:38And so the love and the flavor that we put into it, and the passion.
00:46:42Put a little, put your peanut butter and jelly sandwich in the microwave for like 10 seconds.
00:46:48It's going to change everything.
00:46:49That's it?
00:46:50I triggered the memory?
00:46:51Yeah, it just brought me back.
00:46:52What are your flavors, though?
00:46:54Like when you say flavor, are you talking, I know you have your own seasoning.
00:46:57What are some of the key ingredients?
00:46:58I'm talking something that get on your palate, do a little two-step buck jump, and then you'll be like, damn, that's busting.
00:47:04When I was a young chef, and I was cooking for, doing dinner parties, and everybody got quiet, I was like, damn, my food trashed.
00:47:12But I learned that's the sound of deliciousness.
00:47:14If you could silence a room, like I hope to do all three of y'all in a few minutes, then that means you're doing your thing.
00:47:19So, yeah, flavor, love, and you got to have a little attitude with it, too.
00:47:26You got a little soul in that thing.
00:47:28Chef, or are they playing up?
00:47:30Chef Reagan, what comes to mind when you think of New Orleans flavor?
00:47:33When you go, like, was that Jesus speaking?
00:47:55Yes, he was.
00:47:56He was in the middle of that food.
00:47:58It was so good.
00:47:59I love that.
00:47:59So, for our audience members, what do they have in their pantries that they could just kind of, like, whip up real quick?
00:48:05Is it garlic powder, onion powder, smoked pep?
00:48:10The best thing on a quick, easy budget is pasta.
00:48:15Throw some pasta and some water, some butter, some garlic.
00:48:21That is a meal.
00:48:23We all need all that extra stuff.
00:48:25You got some vegetables, throw some vegetables in there.
00:48:27You got some meat, throw some meat in there.
00:48:28But you don't need all that.
00:48:31And honestly, a pasta is a meal.
00:48:35We have to take care of our body.
00:48:37Oh, you're not frying?
00:48:38No, I'm not frying.
00:48:39We have to do better.
00:48:41We have to figure out ways to eat well without frying it.
00:48:45We have to find ways, and that's one of the reasons why I did this.
00:48:48In the next couple weeks, you'll see me again on TV.
00:48:52I'll be on the great food truck race.
00:48:54Okay.
00:48:54Okay.
00:48:56Okay.
00:48:56Congratulations.
00:48:58Tiny clap.
00:48:59And so, and the theme of our food truck is eating well.
00:49:06Eating to live, not living to eat, right?
00:49:10And so everything that we did was either vegan-based or grilled, but never fried.
00:49:18We have to do better.
00:49:19We got to take care of our bodies, y'all.
00:49:21Right?
00:49:22Right.
00:49:22Everything in moderation.
00:49:23You only get one.
00:49:24Chef Marlon, tell me, what do you think of when you think of New Orleans flavor?
00:49:30I'm going to say the same thing the two chefs in front of me said.
00:49:33It's a perfect mixture of love, flavor, and passion.
00:49:38You need all three of those things to make a great dish.
00:49:43I think if any one of those elements is missing, then it's going to be missing something.
00:49:47But you need all those.
00:49:48You need flavor.
00:49:49You need love.
00:49:50You need passion.
00:49:51All right.
00:49:51We have a question.
00:49:53You also need tomatoes and onions.
00:49:56Rob, why you can't have tomatoes and onions?
00:49:58Are they going to kill you?
00:50:03I already started to do it, and now I don't even want to start to do a saute, because I don't even like that.
00:50:06But, like, sometimes my girl will put a little small, fine saute, and I look past it.
00:50:12I just say that I look past it.
00:50:14But I don't like it.
00:50:15Who hurt you?
00:50:17No, it was the first.
00:50:18So, like, when I was a kid, and I see the, you know, you see the hamburgers on TV.
00:50:22They look all nice.
00:50:23And I just see it like that.
00:50:25When I bit into it, it was like the crunching, and I opened it, and I seen it.
00:50:28I didn't know what that was.
00:50:28I'm like, ugh.
00:50:29And then ever since then.
00:50:30The crunch is the best part.
00:50:32It's a trauma food.
00:50:33That's one of my trauma foods.
00:50:35I seen it, and I was like, ah, so I just never could eat it again.
00:50:37That and spinach.
00:50:38Therapy is good.
00:50:41You don't like spinach either?
00:50:42That's another trauma food.
00:50:44My mama forced me to sit at the table to eat it.
00:50:47Forced me to sit at the table to eat it.
00:50:49For real.
00:50:49Forced me at the table.
00:50:51Everybody got up.
00:50:52I got seven sisters, two brothers, so everybody from the table.
00:50:55I'm at the table.
00:50:58Finally, I'm like, all right, I'm telling you I don't like it.
00:51:00Then I put a little bit in, and I had a gag reflex.
00:51:03A real gag reflex.
00:51:05She think I'm playing.
00:51:06Boy, I'm not playing.
00:51:06Pop, poppy sent me to bed early.
00:51:08Now to this day, don't, no.
00:51:10I hate it.
00:51:11I think about that smack every time I see it.
00:51:13You all right now?
00:51:14I'm good.
00:51:15This is my therapy.
00:51:16I'm good.
00:51:16I'm good.
00:51:17I'm glad we could help you.
00:51:18Okay, I just really wanted to ask him about the tomatoes and the onions.
00:51:21And now the spinach.
00:51:23Out the can?
00:51:25Oh, all right.
00:51:26You know, the Popeye's spinach, they can't hit different.
00:51:34Okay, okay.
00:51:35So I tried it.
00:51:36Now I'm saying as I get older, my taste palate been involved in, so I do try a lot more.
00:51:41So I did try to go back to it.
00:51:43Like a few times.
00:51:43It's nasty every time.
00:51:45It's too strong.
00:51:46Like it's a strong.
00:51:47Yeah.
00:51:47You'll probably enjoy it if it's mixed in with another green.
00:51:50Like if you do spinach with a little baby kale or something, you won't really taste the spinach.
00:51:53The one time I had it and I was like, eh, it was spinach dip.
00:51:56But after like two chips, it was like, I can start tasting it.
00:51:59I'm like, all right, I'm done.
00:52:00Like I can't do it.
00:52:01I tried asking.
00:52:02He's traumatized.
00:52:03I can't mess with the trauma.
00:52:04It's trauma.
00:52:04Because I remember when I was younger, they don't really do it anymore.
00:52:08But spinach with boiled eggs.
00:52:10Do you guys remember that?
00:52:11Oh, I don't know.
00:52:12Okay.
00:52:13That was best.
00:52:13All right.
00:52:14Any more audience questions?
00:52:15Okay, for me, my question to you as chefs and just being at home cooking, I like to cook
00:52:29with music.
00:52:30Oh.
00:52:30That is my therapy when I'm cooking and it's got some of the music that I usually listen
00:52:38to.
00:52:39What do you do for therapy in the kitchen when it's just you and the family's sleeping or
00:52:44everybody's not home?
00:52:46What therapy is for you in the kitchen?
00:52:48Very loud music.
00:52:50Just like you said.
00:52:51I requested that they play Boots on the Ground, New Orleans Bounce version when I came out.
00:52:57But I didn't get that.
00:52:58So I was trying to get us to start jigging while we came out here.
00:53:01But yeah, I love music while I cook.
00:53:03And that helps with the soul transfer, right?
00:53:05The soul music, soul in the food, love.
00:53:07Yeah.
00:53:07Yeah.
00:53:08I'm a loud guy.
00:53:10A lot of music.
00:53:10What's your go-to artist when you're getting in the kitchen?
00:53:15I like a mix.
00:53:18You're not going to push me in that pressure.
00:53:20You're not going to put me in that pressure.
00:53:22I like a good mix.
00:53:23So it depends on the feelings.
00:53:25I could go bounce music.
00:53:26I could go reggae.
00:53:27I could go rap.
00:53:27I could go old school, 90s, 2000s.
00:53:30I may be neo-soul, R&B.
00:53:32It just depends on the mood.
00:53:35Just what I'm into.
00:53:36All right, Chef Reagan.
00:53:36What's your go-to music or your go-to therapy when you're in the kitchen?
00:53:40So I am a very single woman.
00:53:44And I enjoy really trash novels.
00:53:49So I listen to audio books.
00:53:51I'm not going to lie and say I don't.
00:53:53If you ever come to my house, I probably got my earbud in because I'm listening to a trash novel.
00:53:58I love that.
00:54:00My friend listens to trash.
00:54:02I love it.
00:54:03And every time I get in the car, y'all, it's the worst part.
00:54:05Every time.
00:54:06It's the worst.
00:54:07I'm like, what are you listening to?
00:54:08Oh, my God.
00:54:09I'm like, oops, sorry.
00:54:10Every time.
00:54:11That's not for your virgin ears.
00:54:14All right, Chef Marlon.
00:54:15What's your go-to music?
00:54:16Do you have a playlist?
00:54:18Oh, facts.
00:54:19My go-to music is the trap.
00:54:21Okay.
00:54:21I got to listen to trap music.
00:54:23Okay.
00:54:23I got to be up in there whooping dope.
00:54:26You know what I mean?
00:54:26It translates a lot with cooking, real food, and cooking, the other stuff.
00:54:31For me, it feels like I'm trapping.
00:54:32You know what I mean?
00:54:33Like, so it motivates me.
00:54:35It keeps me moving.
00:54:35I got to be in the trap.
00:54:36So we talking about future, amigos, my favorite, all this to listen to when I'm cooking is
00:54:43Jesus.
00:54:44You know what I mean?
00:54:45So, like.
00:54:46It's no man.
00:54:47You know what I mean?
00:54:47So I got to be up in there.
00:54:48You got to trap or die.
00:54:49You hear me?
00:54:49Like, Kenny said, trap or die.
00:54:52All right.
00:54:52You have a favorite music cook?
00:54:54Oh, no.
00:54:56When your girl cooks, what does she listen to?
00:55:00Nothing, really.
00:55:01She just be in there and my thoughts.
00:55:03She just don't want to be bothered.
00:55:04So when she do it, she's like, get the kids.
00:55:06She just, like, just don't have the kids in there.
00:55:08My son, he good.
00:55:09My daughter, she full.
00:55:10So she's the main person.
00:55:11Like, get her out of here.
00:55:13Can you cook anything?
00:55:15Like, what's your best thing there?
00:55:17Like, you know it's going to be good.
00:55:19I can't say it because I'm going to get frowned.
00:55:21Like, it's frowned upon.
00:55:22I don't do it no more.
00:55:23But I use, my go-to meal was like a tilapia.
00:55:25I just do it.
00:55:26It was so fast.
00:55:27I just threw it in the oven.
00:55:28Tilapia was like a little mac and cheese.
00:55:29That was it.
00:55:30Now, I don't really do it.
00:55:32My girl took over, kind of.
00:55:33I just throw a little, I throw, I think a mean bowl.
00:55:36I throw the noodles, though.
00:55:36I throw, yeah, I cut up with the mama noodles.
00:55:39Yeah.
00:55:40The mama, you got to throw a little different stuff in there.
00:55:41Yeah.
00:55:42Now, I would make my own little yagami.
00:55:44Like, I would do, like, the noodles.
00:55:45And I threw the ball eggs in there.
00:55:47Yeah.
00:55:47Then you chop up and throw a little ham in there.
00:55:49Yeah.
00:55:49Yes, Lord.
00:55:52No, I never put the cheese in there.
00:55:53I ain't really, mm-mm.
00:55:54I ain't doing the cheese.
00:55:56But I do a little, I do be trying different stuff, though.
00:55:58It don't be, like, necessarily food.
00:55:59I put stuff together.
00:56:00I'm going to just throw this out there because I'll be telling people this,
00:56:02and they'll be knowing, if you a fan of cookies and cream ice cream.
00:56:06Talk to me.
00:56:07The Blue Bell.
00:56:08Y'all do the Blue Bell cookie?
00:56:09Yeah.
00:56:09Listen.
00:56:11Don't do that ever again.
00:56:12Take Blue Bell French vanilla, and you get Oreos,
00:56:16and you crunch them up, put it in there, make it yourself.
00:56:18It's a little more work.
00:56:18I did that eight years ago.
00:56:19I never ate that cookies and cream again.
00:56:21It's fresh, the crunch with the, oh, my God.
00:56:24I just, amen, amen.
00:56:25I just felt like I just didn't get it done.
00:56:27He literally just tasted it.
00:56:28He just had a whole drink.
00:56:29He had a whole moment.
00:56:30He said, back down memory lane.
00:56:32He went right there.
00:56:36I love it.
00:56:37When your mom is cooking for you, do you hear music,
00:56:39or what are y'all doing?
00:56:42On the video, we play some music.
00:56:47I forgot the game room.
00:56:49Do you feel like you need music when you're in the kitchen,
00:56:52or do you need something on TV?
00:56:54What do you like to do?
00:56:56I like to watch TV while I wait.
00:56:58While you wait.
00:56:59He said, I like to watch TV while I wait.
00:57:01While I wait.
00:57:02All right, Chef Ashley, what do you like to listen to when you're cooking?
00:57:06Is it a certain artist?
00:57:07Is it a playlist?
00:57:09I don't have a favorite artist to listen to,
00:57:11but I definitely listen to music, and I'm a podcast girl.
00:57:14So I like to listen to podcasts while I'm moving around.
00:57:16So, yeah.
00:57:17What kind of podcast?
00:57:19All kinds, really.
00:57:20Joe Button, he's so petty.
00:57:22Like, I just love him.
00:57:23But I listen to a few podcasts.
00:57:25He's the number one, though.
00:57:26What's your go-to meal if you don't have a lot of time?
00:57:30I make time.
00:57:32I'm one of those people, whatever I feel like I want at that time,
00:57:35I'm going through a storm to get it.
00:57:37Yeah.
00:57:38I don't care how long it takes or nothing like that, but, yeah.
00:57:41You indulge.
00:57:42I indulge, too.
00:57:43Like, if I'm going through something, I don't care what it is.
00:57:45I could get a ticket, anything.
00:57:48I've got to feed myself.
00:57:49I'm like, I deserve to eat good.
00:57:52Do you have a go-to meal that you deserve?
00:57:55I'm greedy.
00:57:56So whatever I want at that time, I just make sure I do it.
00:57:58So I want to ask our judges, we know we have the best po' boys here right now on stage,
00:58:04but for our audience members, if they're out and about this weekend,
00:58:08where can they get the best po' boy in the city?
00:58:13I want to let the judges answer that.
00:58:15And then bring it this way.
00:58:18You can go to Parkway and get something, but I want to know what the judges are going to say.
00:58:21Where would you send someone?
00:58:23Probably, I had a po' boy from Triangle Deli that I really like.
00:58:26I'm a jeep girl, so it's like nothing will ever top that unless I make it myself.
00:58:29So it's kind of hard for me to eat po' boys when I go places,
00:58:32but I just like Triangle Deli.
00:58:34Triangle Deli, on broad.
00:58:36Good job, girl.
00:58:36We have a good breakfast, too.
00:58:37Good fucking job.
00:58:40Thank you, sir.
00:58:41Where would you send somebody to get a sandwich, like a po' boy?
00:58:49Come back.
00:58:50Come back.
00:58:51I'm piggybacking over her.
00:58:55I'm a jeans person.
00:58:57Nothing don't really compare, so I don't really eat a lot of po' boys.
00:59:01Nah, like I said, I had one last week, but I was in the studio,
00:59:03and somebody just, my brother went and got from a cornerstone on the West Bank.
00:59:08They did that.
00:59:09But other than that, I don't really eat a lot of po' boys no more.
00:59:13I know.
00:59:13It kind of gets old.
00:59:15If you leave for a while and come back to the city, you kind of miss it, and you'll get one.
00:59:19All right, Chef Marlon, where would you send someone to get a po' boy?
00:59:23Where would you send someone to get a po' boy?
00:59:25His restaurant?
00:59:26Where would you send someone to get a po' boy?
00:59:28Your restaurant?
00:59:29I was thinking, I was processing the question, trying to figure it out, because I'm not a big po' boy fan like that.
00:59:38Like, I ain't pressed about it.
00:59:39I can go anywhere and get it.
00:59:41I mean, so I'm not, if I'm looking and impressed, a lot of people suggest Parkway Bakery.
00:59:47I haven't been there in over a decade, so I couldn't tell you.
00:59:52I'd take it to any cornerstone in the city.
00:59:54Any cornerstone.
00:59:54I feel like, and you can't miss with that.
00:59:56You know what I mean?
00:59:57What cornerstone and what neighborhood are you sending out tourists to safely?
01:00:03First of all, if you come into New Orleans, you can't be worried about safety.
01:00:07You got to dabble in the danger a little bit.
01:00:11You got to walk through the hood, step through the project.
01:00:14We live here, too.
01:00:14You got to just walk with a bounce.
01:00:17You know what I mean?
01:00:18You walk with a bounce.
01:00:19As long as you look like you belong, you're straight.
01:00:22And if somebody call you or look at you, you look right at them.
01:00:25You look right back at them.
01:00:26You look right back at them.
01:00:27You did?
01:00:28I'm going to say the triangle.
01:00:30You can go to the triangle right on broad.
01:00:31I was going to say the triangle.
01:00:32That's how the rule is, but that's dipping your toe.
01:00:35That's dipping your toe in a little bit of love.
01:00:37And a little bit of hood, but deliciousness.
01:00:39And Broadview.
01:00:39I like Broadview, too.
01:00:41Broadview good, yeah.
01:00:41That's the country from there.
01:00:43And they have the best ones.
01:00:44Broadview.
01:00:44What do you think?
01:00:45My favorite is D'Amelisa's.
01:00:47And I know it's not black on, but I don't care.
01:00:49That lady be touching them shrimp with her fingers.
01:00:52And it be good.
01:00:53I don't know what she do.
01:00:54No gloves?
01:00:55But that D'Amelisa's is the best.
01:00:57Gloves or no gloves?
01:00:58All the annunciation.
01:00:59Okay, okay.
01:01:00Yep, all the way uptown.
01:01:01Way uptown.
01:01:02Way uptown.
01:01:03It's way uptown.
01:01:04Yep.
01:01:05You have a place you thought about where you would send somebody
01:01:07to get some food here?
01:01:11All right, girl.
01:01:12Who are getting cold?
01:01:13Come on.
01:01:13This is too real.
01:01:14Come on.
01:01:15Come on.
01:01:15Show what's going on.
01:01:16What you doing?
01:01:17Oh, Jesus.
01:01:18Four seasons.
01:01:21He said the four seasons.
01:01:23What do you get from the four seasons?
01:01:25Five, four, four.
01:01:25I'm going to give your ass some coffee now.
01:01:27Young Princey?
01:01:27For real, sir.
01:01:29We ain't got no time.
01:01:30They ain't hit us with the three minutes yet, so we got us.
01:01:32Two, one.
01:01:33You can't count me out now, because y'all ready.
01:01:36I don't know how to tell people when I get a sandwich.
01:01:38We're resting you.
01:01:40What y'all talking about up there?
01:01:41What's going on?
01:01:42I mean, yeah.
01:01:43I've been on top.
01:01:44Bring us into the stage, y'all.
01:01:45What's going on?
01:01:46Oh, well, they finished playing up, right?
01:01:48We played it.
01:01:49But I told them in my experience, until I see a clock say,
01:01:52we getting down.
01:01:54Everybody look around for a clock.
01:01:56I want y'all to have this food hot.
01:01:58Green.
01:01:59Get that man to stop watching.
01:02:00Oh, nah, uh, uh, uh, uh.
01:02:01No, don't do it now, because I told y'all that.
01:02:03Hands up.
01:02:04Hands up.
01:02:04Y'all ain't going to do me that.
01:02:06Hands up.
01:02:08I said time.
01:02:09Get it on the plate.
01:02:11Get it on the plate.
01:02:13Get it on the plate.
01:02:15Get it on the plate.
01:02:17Get it on the plate.
01:02:19All right, we coming.
01:02:20We only got to drop the hot fish and the hot shrimp.
01:02:23Get it in eight rounds of food.
01:02:26I'm here for overstuffed poor boys.
01:02:31We have any more questions from our audience?
01:02:33Okay, we got some.
01:02:34I'm going to fry that one.
01:02:38And I'll under fry this one.
01:02:40All right, tell me your name, and then tell me where you're from,
01:02:43and do you have a question for anyone in specifically?
01:02:46That batter is so good.
01:02:48Hey, how y'all doing?
01:02:48My name is Keyes of Beauty.
01:02:49I am from here, and I am out of their hair stylist on the page.
01:02:55I have a question.
01:02:57I'm glad you did it.
01:02:58Do they have extras for the audience?
01:03:00And if they do, how do we get for a big?
01:03:03They're not just making food.
01:03:04It's like a sandwich.
01:03:04Yeah.
01:03:06Chef.
01:03:07Yes.
01:03:07One of our audience members, she said, if you don't care.
01:03:11Hey, come on.
01:03:12Hey.
01:03:12What's up, come on?
01:03:13She wanted a little tray.
01:03:14She said, are you guys going to have anything for the audience?
01:03:17And if not, where can they get something from you?
01:03:21Wait, what?
01:03:22I know we've got Chicken's Kitchen, but I didn't hear none of the questions.
01:03:25Where can she get something from me?
01:03:26Y'all have any crumbs left, like for the audience?
01:03:28Oh, yeah.
01:03:29I got a little few, a little yad for y'all.
01:03:31You know where I live.
01:03:32We got a little something for y'all to sample.
01:03:34We can pass it around.
01:03:35I don't know about them, but I got a little crumb.
01:03:38I got a little something here.
01:03:40I got a little crumb or two.
01:03:41Hust sauce with our fried shrimp will be fire.
01:03:45Any more questions from my audience?
01:03:46All right, so I want to kind of double back to social media and tell our audience members
01:03:53where they can find you guys, spell your names for us, and tell us what your social
01:03:58media is all about.
01:04:00Go ahead.
01:04:02All right, so I am Chef Reagan, curated by Reagan.
01:04:09Pull out your phones.
01:04:10Come on.
01:04:10Get to it.
01:04:12I am the worst, y'all.
01:04:13I have like literally zero followers.
01:04:16I'm just not good at it.
01:04:19My social media manager is like sick of me because I hate social media, but it's curated
01:04:26by Reagan or Reagan the Sydney, R-E-A-G-A-N, the Sydney.
01:04:32Get your phones out.
01:04:33Come on.
01:04:33Follow me.
01:04:35And I, again, will be on a great food duck race.
01:04:40I was on season 13 of MasterChef, so you can watch me there.
01:04:43And I'm always on the news, so you can see me there, too, because I'm this great, big,
01:04:48bubbly personality.
01:04:50So follow me and hire me.
01:04:55I'm a private chef.
01:04:56That's right.
01:04:57That's right.
01:04:57Please.
01:04:58I will say, in New Orleans, the best places that you're going to eat are going to be from
01:05:04our private chefs.
01:05:05We have good brick and mortars, too, but our private chef, I will pull up to somebody's
01:05:09house.
01:05:10I am that person.
01:05:11My family judges me.
01:05:12My auntie, she cooks.
01:05:14She be selling plates.
01:05:15Listen, you need two hands for the plates when you go to someone's house.
01:05:19So always, never miss a supper.
01:05:21Chef Marlon, tell us your social media, and then how can people find you?
01:05:25Okay, the best way to find us is to Google us.
01:05:28Google's Chicken's Kitchen.
01:05:30And all our social medias come up.
01:05:31Our websites, even on IG, TikTok, Facebook is all Chicken's Kitchen.
01:05:39You search that, we'll pop up.
01:05:41Unlike her, I love social media, because social media is our lifeline.
01:05:45Social media is what feeds our business.
01:05:47I didn't get a chance to share my story earlier, but we actually got our Facebook, I mean,
01:05:52our Instagram hack back in 2020.
01:05:54We was right crawling across 20,000 followers.
01:05:58Our page got hacked.
01:05:59In the first month, without having that page, we lost $11,000 because people assumed we were
01:06:04closed.
01:06:05Oh, wow.
01:06:05Because one thing Rob talked about was consistency.
01:06:08So one thing I do every day is post.
01:06:10Whether we make sure people, remind people that we open, because people have ADD.
01:06:15You know what I mean, when it comes, it's hard to keep people's attention, especially when
01:06:18you're talking about food.
01:06:19Especially when you're talking about food in New Orleans, you've got to remind people
01:06:22you exist.
01:06:23And without that page, people assumed we were closed, and they didn't show up.
01:06:28But it also taught me a lesson about keep pushing forward and not being content, because
01:06:33I was kind of okay with where we had with Instagram.
01:06:36We didn't have a TikTok at the time.
01:06:38We had 20,000 followers, like I said, on Instagram.
01:06:40That got hacked, and we started off with zero.
01:06:42I had to start a new Instagram page with zero followers, and I started a new TikTok page,
01:06:46and I had zero followers.
01:06:48And within six months, we had group, we created a TikTok page, and we had over 200,000 followers.
01:06:54Just from the TikTok, we just crossed like 120 on Instagram, but that shows me to stay
01:06:59consistent, keep pushing, keep growing, because at the end of the day, the first thing everybody
01:07:04do when they wake up in the morning is usually not brush their teeth.
01:07:08Let's get on their phone.
01:07:09You know what I mean?
01:07:10As long as we post and remind the people we exist, we keep people in the door.
01:07:13Chef Kenneth?
01:07:15All over.
01:07:16My website, Facebook, TikTok, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, YouTube, Kenneth Temple.
01:07:25K-E-N-N-E-T-H-T-E-M-P-L-E.
01:07:31And if there's any busy professionals up in here who are looking for delicious 30-minute
01:07:34meals, get the QR code.
01:07:37The last-minute chef is my new project that I'm working on to help busy people cook delicious
01:07:41well-oom.
01:07:42That make them taste good.
01:07:44In less time, they're still busting with flavor.
01:07:46All right, so it looks like we are done, judges.
01:07:50All right, so I'm going to walk through.
01:07:52Tell me very quickly what you have, and then we're going to pass it down and give it to
01:07:57our judges.
01:07:58Six-wall fish and shrimp po' boy with a cabbage salad.
01:08:01Was that fast enough?
01:08:02All right.
01:08:04All right.
01:08:05This is my special.
01:08:06No tomatoes.
01:08:07Oh, y'all getting whole, po' boys.
01:08:21Only Rob had no tomatoes.
01:08:24There's two no tomatoes.
01:08:27Yeah, he did say.
01:08:29Two no tomatoes.
01:08:30Two no tomatoes.
01:08:31You can take a tomato.
01:08:32I mean, you want me to take them?
01:08:33I just took my gloves off.
01:08:34Let me go get some more gloves.
01:08:36I'll rip them off for them.
01:08:37All right, Chef.
01:08:40All right, Chef Reagan.
01:08:41Oh, wait, wait.
01:08:42Oh, wait, wait, wait, wait.
01:08:43We're not finished.
01:08:44We got some salt.
01:08:49And we dipping or pouring.
01:08:52Dipping or pouring.
01:08:53That's how I saw you like on your po' boy.
01:08:55All right, Chef Reagan, what you got for us?
01:08:58We have a barbecue shrimp meatball po' boy.
01:09:02Is it dressed traditionally, or do you have anything extra on it?
01:09:08This is a barbecue.
01:09:09This is New Orleans barbecue shrimp sauce.
01:09:12Yes.
01:09:14Oh, yeah.
01:09:14And I didn't say mine is semi-traditional.
01:09:17All right.
01:09:21All right.
01:09:23Are they taking their bite first?
01:09:24I'll wait for them to take their bite.
01:09:32Now, what made you name this Six Wallet?
01:09:35Because that's where I had my first.
01:09:36Yeah, I'm from Six Wallet and Gentilly.
01:09:38So that's where I had my first po' boy at.
01:09:40So we take it to where the roots started.
01:09:43With a little twist, like I said, to the Vietnamese twist, I wanted to add a little cabbage, hit
01:09:47it with some fish sauce, and instead of throwing mayonnaise over it, put a little cilantro.
01:09:51Still kind of dressed, but just a little slight twist to it.
01:09:53What were you over here blending?
01:09:55I made a homemade mayonnaise.
01:09:56Yeah, so it's a homemade mayonnaise with fish sauce, rice, wine, vinegar, salt, pepper, and
01:10:01a little cayenne.
01:10:02I love it.
01:10:03All right.
01:10:03You ready for our next?
01:10:05Y'all ready?
01:10:06All right.
01:10:07Chef Reagan.
01:10:11Without.
01:10:14You know we people, right?
01:10:15Okay.
01:10:26All right, I'm going to come down and get some first thoughts from our judges.
01:10:42All right, Chef, what are some of your first thoughts?
01:10:45That's an extra?
01:10:47No, that's the one with tomatoes.
01:10:48That's the one without.
01:10:49Okay.
01:10:50First thoughts on our Six Wallet po' boy.
01:10:53I love it.
01:10:54I love cilantro, so that was one of the key things.
01:10:57I love the hot sauce that he used and the cabbage.
01:10:59What happened?
01:11:00Also with his mayo, the homemade mayo.
01:11:01I made two without tomatoes.
01:11:03Can you taste the difference with the homemade mayo?
01:11:05Yeah, I can.
01:11:05Well, of course I can.
01:11:07Me.
01:11:07Yeah, it was fresh, fresh.
01:11:09All right, Justin, what do you think of the first po' boy?
01:11:12I guess it went around.
01:11:13That was super good.
01:11:16That was super good.
01:11:17I liked it.
01:11:19Okay, he liked it.
01:11:20He said it was super good.
01:11:21You liked that?
01:11:21The barbecue and shrimp sauce should.
01:11:22Chef, well, judge.
01:11:24Chicken meatballs.
01:11:25What you think of the first one?
01:11:25I don't have them on my balls.
01:11:27I like the first one.
01:11:27That's just the shrimp and the...
01:11:28You want some?
01:11:29Want to taste?
01:11:30The fish and the shrimp, real good.
01:11:33The dessert, it kind of reminds me of spinach a little bit.
01:11:35A little strong taste.
01:11:36The lichen?
01:11:38Whatever.
01:11:39Rougala?
01:11:40Yeah, it was a heck.
01:11:41It got a similar...
01:11:42But, no, but look, the hot sauce on it kind of dumbed it down and kind of really,
01:11:49you know, it was good.
01:11:51That's what I'm trying to say.
01:11:51Okay.
01:11:52All right.
01:11:52It was...
01:11:54However you put it together.
01:11:55Yeah.
01:11:56The batter look.
01:11:56I was ready to finish eating it, but then they brought me something else a whole lot.
01:11:59You can always go back.
01:12:00Don't worry.
01:12:01You can always go back.
01:12:01The shrimp, Chef Ashley, what are you thinking of the barbecue shrimp?
01:12:04I like it.
01:12:04I'm not usually a huge fan on a barbecue shrimp sauce, but this is very different.
01:12:08I love the way she played in it, and it's like a new technique, like another thing.
01:12:11I like that.
01:12:12I was going to say, you have a new technique that I've actually never seen, so you blended
01:12:16the shrimp, put them in, and did you fry them or pan fry them?
01:12:19Oh, no.
01:12:20I kept it low so that it was like an oven, because the best way to cook your meatballs is
01:12:26in the oven.
01:12:27It maintains the flavor and the moisture, so I created kind of an oven situation.
01:12:35And shrimp cooks fast.
01:12:37Yes, it does.
01:12:38So you have to cook it slow so that it won't fall apart.
01:12:41If you cook it too fast, that's how the pieces come apart.
01:12:44Did you coat them at all, the meatballs?
01:12:46I did.
01:12:47I formed it all.
01:12:48I usually use coconut flour, but we had all-purpose, so the taste is a little different because usually
01:12:53coconut flour has a little sweetness to it, but I think it did its thing, right?
01:12:58Yeah, I know.
01:12:59It's amazing.
01:13:00Tell me, what did you think about this po' boy?
01:13:02Oh, we got to get his drink.
01:13:05A sip of water.
01:13:06Yeah.
01:13:09What did you think about the shrimp?
01:13:12It was good.
01:13:13What did you like about it?
01:13:15The flavor.
01:13:16You like that flavor, baby?
01:13:17Yeah.
01:13:18Good.
01:13:19Don't mess up your outfit, because that got to last all day, I'm sure.
01:13:22Essence is just getting started.
01:13:24All right, what did you like about, what did you think about the barbecue shrimp?
01:13:28My favorite part about it was the fact that it was different.
01:13:31I never liked the meatball-shrimp combination and how you, like she said, you put it together.
01:13:35I thought it was going to be meatballs and shrimp, like separate.
01:13:38But yeah, so how you put it together, like, yeah, I like that.
01:13:41I like that.
01:13:42The flavor, the flavor is there.
01:13:44Yeah, it was good.
01:13:46Is this something that people can do, like our audience members can do?
01:13:49This is something you can do at home, but if you call me, I'm Neil Pup, so you have
01:13:54to call me to get it.
01:13:55I heard that.
01:13:56I heard that.
01:13:57All right, we have our next dish coming out.
01:13:59Chef Marlon, tell us what we're, but you got to wait.
01:14:02No, I'm sorry.
01:14:03I just, because I gave him a review about the whatever, the wrong one, whatever that
01:14:07is, whatever, but I could bit a piece of that fish just by itself.
01:14:12Yes.
01:14:13Respect.
01:14:13All right.
01:14:14All right, we got Chef Marlon, tell us what we have here.
01:14:18All right, what we have right there is our Nola Surf and Turf po'boy.
01:14:22So we got a smoked sausage jam served with some fried shrimp, rummolai sauce, romaine lettuce
01:14:30and tomato on one.
01:14:33All right, let's dig in.
01:14:36I'm talking about India.
01:14:38Possibly.
01:14:39There you go, bro, y'all.
01:14:43All right, moment of truth is our last po'boy.
01:14:51Baby Justin is going to work.
01:15:00All right, first thoughts, first thoughts.
01:15:03I love the smoked sausage.
01:15:05I'm not huge on smoked sausage either, but I like the way he chopped it up and added
01:15:08another flavor and I like the texture.
01:15:11Because it's kind of like bacon, but it was good.
01:15:13I like that.
01:15:16What'd you think about this, the last one?
01:15:23Great.
01:15:24What did you like about it?
01:15:29The flavor.
01:15:30Always the flavor.
01:15:30Never do it for me, darling.
01:15:32You still eatin' yours.
01:15:35You on bite two or three.
01:15:38You supposed to have one bite and then we gonna do the first.
01:15:40You got some chef scraps over here, darling?
01:15:42I'm just trying to pack up to make it easier for them.
01:15:44Got some napkins for our judges.
01:15:45Get up out of here.
01:15:50Okay, so we know this one is finger licking good.
01:15:54How are we, y'all?
01:15:58Between you and Kelly.
01:16:00Here we go, I'm coming.
01:16:01Oh, you already called?
01:16:03Oh, yeah, we can split that with you.
01:16:04Here we go.
01:16:05So, all right, this also was different.
01:16:07You say these, that's not bacon, that's smoked sausage.
01:16:09Smoked sausage, smoked sausage, yeah.
01:16:12I never had smoked sausage and shrimp together.
01:16:15I don't think I had that together.
01:16:16I love smoked sausage, I love shrimp.
01:16:18I never had it together.
01:16:20I don't know what the sauce is, but I gave the sauce a dip.
01:16:24This, this, this here.
01:16:26I gotta rate this a yes, Lord.
01:16:28You from New Orleans, you know that yes, Lord.
01:16:30Thank you, brother, thank you, thank you, thank you.
01:16:31What the little sauce is, what the little sauce is?
01:16:32What was the sauce?
01:16:33It's a Romulat sauce.
01:16:34It's a Romulat sauce, but it got my own little twist to it.
01:16:38All right.
01:16:39I was about to ask you if you made this sauce yourself, because I can tell it's not.
01:16:42I can't, I can't hit nothing.
01:16:43You're saying, sir?
01:16:44I wanted to ask you if you made this sauce yourself.
01:16:46Yeah, I did.
01:16:47Everything I made, yeah, I made it myself.
01:16:50Tell us about a Romulat sauce for anybody that may not be familiar with it.
01:16:53I know it's a New Orleans staple.
01:16:54It's a Creole sauce, but you can do a lot of stuff with it, as far as a Romulat.
01:17:03The base is mayonnaise, but you put seasoning in there like chives, onions, high sauce, Creole
01:17:10mustard.
01:17:11You can use capers or pickles.
01:17:12So, in the sauce I made with this, we got some mayo, shallots, fresh dill, fresh chives, some high sauce, lemon, and a few little
01:17:26seasonings up in there, a little secret seasonings, but that's what we have in our Romulat.
01:17:30I got enough for y'all to try, too, if y'all want to come up here.
01:17:35I got some extra shrimp that we can try with the shrimp and the Romulat.
01:17:40All right.
01:17:41We're going to give our judges about 60 seconds to deliberate, get your thoughts together.
01:17:46We're going to rate each person from 1 to 10.
01:17:51So, take the next 60 seconds, think on it, and then we'll come back to you guys.
01:18:00Did y'all have fun, audience?
01:18:03And y'all hung in there.
01:18:05I love it.
01:18:09Honey, clap.
01:18:11Whoo!
01:18:12Everyone on the stage offers catering services.
01:18:16Private chef, sir.
01:18:17If you can't get it today, you can get it in the future.
01:18:20Yes.
01:18:20And Chef Kenneth, I thought you made pralines in like 30 minutes.
01:18:25That's all on this.
01:18:26He has really good Instagram.
01:18:2930-minute meals, amazing.
01:18:32Yes.
01:18:33Yes.
01:18:33Yeah.
01:18:34And I teach people how to cook.
01:18:36That's what the food blog is all for.
01:18:39We're not.
01:18:41Oh.
01:18:41Why not?
01:18:42I got enough.
01:18:43Follow in.
01:18:44Oh.
01:18:44Good job.
01:18:45Oh, shit.
01:18:46We made it without a finish line.
01:18:48How about the actionable plates to pass it out?
01:18:49Some of y'all count me down.
01:18:50We did gut it.
01:18:52They're about to announce.
01:18:55Oh.
01:18:56I got to go potty so bad.
01:18:59I got to go potty.
01:19:00Yeah, I wouldn't be before we started.
01:19:02I couldn't get in.
01:19:03You know the ladies' bathroom, we're having to lie down the law.
01:19:06Don't look at no liquids.
01:19:15All right.
01:19:16Getting to be about that time.
01:19:21Look at that.
01:19:28Any last thoughts for our beautiful audience?
01:19:32Uh, stay hydrated, have fun, and don't end up on Orleans and Broad.
01:19:37There you go.
01:19:39Please don't end up on.
01:19:40Oh, really good advice.
01:19:42Yes.
01:19:42Orleans and Broad is the jailhouse for the tourists.
01:19:44Yes.
01:19:44So don't end up there.
01:19:46Have all the fun and be clear.
01:19:48They're not going to let you out like the mother ones did.
01:19:49No, yeah.
01:19:50It's a long week in June.
01:19:50That ain't going to never happen again.
01:19:52Well, at least in this administration.
01:19:53We're going to work on Fridays in New Orleans, so you're going to be in trouble.
01:19:54You're going to miss that flight.
01:19:58Not in this administration.
01:19:59Any last thoughts, Chef Marlon, for our audience?
01:20:02Any last thoughts?
01:20:03Oh, yeah.
01:20:04My last thought is I lied to y'all.
01:20:07So they told me I lied.
01:20:09They told me I can't serve y'all because it's a liability issue.
01:20:12Yeah.
01:20:12Between, uh, I'm working for Essence right now.
01:20:15Yeah.
01:20:15So technically I can't give y'all this food because everything happened.
01:20:17It is a lie.
01:20:18It's on Essence.
01:20:19It's not on me.
01:20:20So I apologize.
01:20:21I can't feed y'all.
01:20:22It's stuff for my family because I know they ain't going to soup.
01:20:24They can have some.
01:20:26But his restaurant, y'all.
01:20:27His restaurant is literally eight minutes.
01:20:30It's literally eight minutes away.
01:20:31Chicken's Kitchen.
01:20:33All the coop for breakfast.
01:20:35All lunch.
01:20:36Chicken's Kitchen.
01:20:37But we are all closed this week for our mental health break.
01:20:43But we'll be right back open on Monday.
01:20:45We closed on weekends.
01:20:46And y'all got oxtail and grits.
01:20:48They got oxtail and grits.
01:20:49They got oxtail and grits on Tuesdays.
01:20:50We also have oxtail and other things on Tuesdays at Chicken's Kitchen.
01:20:54Got gumbo and grits on Wednesdays.
01:20:56We got a different menu every day Monday through Friday.
01:20:59We like to have fun.
01:21:00Deep fried.
01:21:02What are we doing?
01:21:03The deep fried pepper?
01:21:04Yeah, we got deep fried pepper balls.
01:21:06Instead of stuffing, I put my stuffing inside of a pepper.
01:21:09We roll it up and deep fry.
01:21:10We do a lot of fun stuff.
01:21:11How are we looking, Judges?
01:21:12It's very good.
01:21:13A few more minutes?
01:21:14A few more?
01:21:15Chef Reagan, what is it for your family members, for your friends?
01:21:20If you're like, what y'all want?
01:21:21What are they asking you to cook?
01:21:23What's like your best dish?
01:21:24My barbecue.
01:21:25Your barbecue?
01:21:26I barbecue, yeah.
01:21:27I grill and I barbecue, and I make some of the best smoked meats you ever had in your life.
01:21:32What's the trick to making?
01:21:34Because that is a tricky thing.
01:21:35It is tricky.
01:21:36It is tricky.
01:21:37It is finding the right amount of temperature.
01:21:41Your charcoal, your wood, with all those things, you got to make sure that the fish.
01:21:46What kind of wood?
01:21:47Right under 350, right at 350, 200, somewhere in there.
01:21:51You got to be careful about high heat, because that will char your food.
01:21:56What kind of wood?
01:21:58Whitney.
01:21:59Whitney.
01:21:59And we can't have, eat charred food.
01:22:01I'm mad at you.
01:22:02What kind of wood?
01:22:03Apple, what is it?
01:22:04I'm a big Applewood fan.
01:22:06Okay.
01:22:06I am a big Applewood fan.
01:22:07Applewood, y'all.
01:22:08I use Applewood chips.
01:22:10Yeah.
01:22:11Okay.
01:22:12Chef Kenneth, you in town.
01:22:14Your people are over.
01:22:15What are they begging you to cook?
01:22:17Go ask them.
01:22:18They're over there in this corner, right behind the gentleman with the red shirt.
01:22:21Go ask them.
01:22:22Probably something on my cookbook.
01:22:26I don't know.
01:22:26You know, recipes all over nowadays, you know.
01:22:31Where did Kelly go?
01:22:32Oh, she's going that way.
01:22:32All right.
01:22:35Let's jump.
01:22:37All right.
01:22:38We're good?
01:22:40All right.
01:22:41We can't.
01:22:44Oh, okay.
01:22:45I think it's time.
01:22:46The judges have put their.
01:22:47Yeah, we ran out of time.
01:22:49Oh, we ran out of time.
01:22:49Chef Kenneth, what are they asking you for?
01:22:51You know what they're begging you for.
01:22:53Everybody eats something different, you know.
01:22:55Yeah.
01:22:55Red beans, oxtail.
01:22:56Your wife, what is she begging you for?
01:22:58Oxtail.
01:22:59Oxtail, I love oxtail.
01:23:00Oxtail Italian.
01:23:01Oxtail pizza.
01:23:03All right, Chef Marlon.
01:23:03What are they asking you for?
01:23:06We're talking family, right?
01:23:08Family, friends, like.
01:23:10Both my family and friends are so small because I've been feeding them for free for decades.
01:23:15They ain't impressed about nothing.
01:23:16That cousin right there might want some macaroni.
01:23:18How you feeling?
01:23:19You know what I mean?
01:23:19Mac and cheese.
01:23:20Mac and cheese.
01:23:21You know what I mean?
01:23:22Yeah, have fun.
01:23:23Anything that don't have meat in it for her.
01:23:25So when can we all come over?
01:23:27Oh, look.
01:23:28Look, we got the right shirt on.
01:23:29We got our fifth anniversary coming up for Chicken's Kitchen in September.
01:23:33I plan on putting something big together for that.
01:23:35There's going to be a community event that we're going to be feeding y'all and throwing
01:23:39our love out there.
01:23:40You hear me on the list?
01:23:41Thanks.
01:23:41Y'all got that.
01:23:42Okay.
01:23:42So we have a winner.
01:23:46All right.
01:23:46Our winner for the po' boy showdown is going to be Chef Marlon.
01:23:53Yay!
01:23:56Chef Marlon of Chicken's Kitchen.
01:24:00Congratulations.
01:24:01Any words?
01:24:01I'm going to give you the mic so they can really hear you.
01:24:03Oh, thanks.
01:24:04Oh, I got the mic.
01:24:05Now y'all can hear me for real.
01:24:07Yeah.
01:24:08Look, honestly, I ain't come here to win.
01:24:11And I love to compete.
01:24:12More than anything, it's just fun to be here in front of all these beautiful black people.
01:24:17You hear me?
01:24:17For this wonderful event, the great job Essence put on, inviting us to these events and how
01:24:23accommodating they are, how good of a job they do.
01:24:26This is a huge undertaking and they do a fantastic job.
01:24:29So it was just fun for me.
01:24:31I mean, I love coming out and having fun.
01:24:32I love cooking.
01:24:33I could do it for free at this point.
01:24:35You dig?
01:24:35There you go.
01:24:36More than anything, it's a reward that I want.
01:24:39It is, but it's just fun.
01:24:40It's fun being here.
01:24:42And thank y'all chefs for sharing the stage with me.
01:24:44They did a great job too.
01:24:45Their food was fantastic.
01:24:46I tried both of them.
01:24:48Both of them food was good as well.
01:24:49You dig?
01:24:50But thank y'all for coming too.
01:24:51Appreciate y'all.
01:24:53Thank you, Chef Marlon.
01:24:54And thank you to our beautiful audience.
01:24:56You guys look amazing.
01:24:57This is a great kickoff to Essence Festival.
01:25:00We're going to be here all weekend.
01:25:02Our beautiful Whitney is going to take you to the next segment.
01:25:06All right, y'all.
01:25:07Thank y'all so much.
01:25:09Y'all did great.
01:25:09I'm going to have some of these little snacks in a little bit, so don't throw it away.
01:25:12All right.
01:25:13And then we're going to abstinence.
01:25:16You
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