The Chefs
Don J. Bingham
Don J. Bingham is a familiar face in the culinary world in Arkansas. As a former Chef of the Year (1995) and current American Culinary Federation state president, Don has 25 years in the field. Until recently, he was seen daily for seven years on Little Rock's CBS affiliate, KTHV, as a guest chef on a noon show. His cooking segment was sponsored by Kroger Company. The author of two books (Celebrate with Cooking and Celebrate the Holidays), Don hosts hundreds of cooking demonstrations, lectures and club appearances each year in Arkansas.
He recently accepted a position as Adminstrator of the Arkansas State Governors Mansion where he oversees the day to day operations of the Mansion, its staff, and its operations. A major function of his new postion is the special event planning of the Mansion's activities and functions including Heads of State Dinners, lawn extravaganzas with royal tent parties, menu planning and party production.
Don has also been AETN's host for its ABCs of Cooking series, since its inception. There have been 10 shows with accompaning cookbooks.
Dan Blumenthal
After receiving a Bachelor's degree in Business/Economics from the University of California, Dan attended the Professional Chef Program at the California Culinary Academy in San Francisco. Upon graduating, he plied his trade in several of San Francisco's premier eateries, including Spuntino, Boudin Sourdough Bakery and Cafe Kati. In 1993, he realized his dream of owning his own restaurant and returned to his former hometown of Jackson, Mississippi, to open BRAVO! with partner Jeff Good and ex-partner David Blumenthal. In the six and one-half years BRAVO! has been open, it has garnered much critical acclaim and notoriety, including being voted Restaurant Of the Year four years in a row by the Jackson Convention and Visitor's Bureau, receiving the Award of Excellence from the Wine Spectator magazine four years running for it's outstanding wine list, and being awarded the small business Super Achiever Award from the Metro Jackson Chamber of Commerce in 1999.
In 1998, Dan and Jeff opened Broad Street Baking Company, adding another feather to their cap. In response to Broad Street's overwhelming success, the duo are in the process of moving their bread baking facility from it's current Banner Hall location to a larger space where they can produce bread for wholesale accounts across the Metro Jackson area.
Chef Dan has had the honor of hosting numerous cooking classes, appearing on several television shows and donating his time at countless charity events. He has cooked for Magrit Mondavi at the Palaces of St. Petersburg exhibit, Governor Ronnie Musgrove and guests at the Mississippi Governor's Mansion, and recently had the great honor of being invited to cook with other chefs from across the country at the annual The James Beard House dinner at KC's Restaurant in Cleveland, MS.
John D. Folse, CEC, AAC
Chef John Folse is the owner and executive chef of his Louisiana-based corporations. Lafitte’s Landing Restaurant in Donaldsonville is recognized as one of the finest restaurants in and around New Orleans. White Oak Plantation in Baton Rouge houses his catering and events management company. Louisiana’s Premier Products, the state’s only chef-owned and operated manufacturing company, produces soups, sauces, entrees and specialty items for chain restaurants, foodservice and retail establishments across the country. Folse has authored numerous books, which are available in bookstores across the country. He hosts his own national television cooking show, “A Taste of Louisiana” for PBS, and his syndicated radio show “Stirrin’ It Up!” can be heard nationwide.
Folse is respected around the world as an authority on Cajun and Creole cuisine and culture. He has also gained national recognition within the retail and foodservice community for his efforts in new product development and manufacturing. He has taken his famous “Taste of Louisiana” from Hollywood to the Great Wall of China, opening promotional Louisiana restaurants in Hong Kong, Japan, Beijing, London, Paris, Bogota, Taipei and Seoul. In 1987, Chef Folse was honored as the “Louisiana Restaurateur of the Year” by the Louisiana Restaurant Association and in 1988, the Louisiana Sales and Marketing Executives named him “Louisiana’s Marketing Ambassador to the World.” That same year, Folse made international headlines by opening his Lafitte’s Landing East in Moscow during the summit between President Ronald Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev. This was the first time that an American restaurant had operated on Russian soil. Immediately, following this venture, John hosted 10 Soviet chefs for the first ever Soviet-American Culinary Exchange. In 1989, Chef Folse was invited to create the first Vatican State Dinner in Rome and also had a private audience with Pope John Paul II. In 1990, Chef Folse was named the National Chef of the Year, the highest honor an American chef can receive. His Lafitte’s Landing Restaurant was inducted into the “Fine Dining Hall of Fame” in 1989 and received the DiRoNA (Distinguished Restaurants of North America) award in 1996. In recognition of his efforts in research and development, Chef Folse’s manufacturing company received TGI Friday’s Inc. Procurement Product Development Award in March 1998 for assisting in the development of Friday’s Jack Daniels’ glaze.
Folse has been honored by local, state and international governments for his continuing efforts to showcase America’s regional cooking around the world. His most prestigious acknowledgment to date was Nicholls State University’s decision to name their new culinary program in his honor. The Chef John Folse Culinary Institute at Nicholls State in Thibodaux, Louisiana offers Associate and Bachelor of Science Degrees in Culinary Arts.
Gus Ravanos
Gus Ravanos was born and raised in Greece. His family owned a restaurant and hotel on the island. “I always knew I wanted to be in the business,” recalls Gus. In Greece, at 18, men are required to enlist in the army. In keeping with his parents wishes, at the age of 17, he left Greece to live with relatives in Nassau in the Bahamas. And in 1975, he received a student visa to attend Huntington College in Montgomery, Alabama (I asked the same question - the Dean of his high school in the Bahamas had graduated from Huntington).
In 1979, Gus graduated and began working two jobs—one in a restaurant and one in a frozen food factory making pizza. During this time, he also met someone. You see, on the side, Gus helped in his brother's travel agency. A young lady from Montgomery had bought a ticket to Greece, but had to cancel the trip. After talking to Gus about the ticket, the two realized that Gus was from the same island in Greece where her father grew up. That year, Kiki and Gus were married.
They spent three months in New York while Gus worked in a bakery, but Kiki missed the South. Gus heard about a job running a hotel restaurant in Slidell, Louisiana. The two moved to Slidell and stayed there until 1981. In 1981, Gus and Kiki moved to Mobile - mainly to be close to the Gulf - and worked in a restaurant.
During the Spring of 1995, Gus attended LeCordon Blue in Paris. Not only was he taking the regular courses, but he also attended the pastry classes, as well. “This was an excellent way to learn,” says Gus. “They taught me many short-cuts and tricks.” Gus returned home to his wife in Mobile and on December 14, 1995, their dreams came true - Gus's Azalea Manor Courtyard opened on Dauphin Street.
“Now customers come in and don't even look at the menu,” says Gus. “They'll tell their waiter, just tell Gus to make me something.” While Gus is in the kitchen, Kiki is the dessert queen. She says, “I'm expressing my creative outlet through my desserts.“ The two also have two children, a 16-year old son and an 11-year old daughter.
“It has been a lot of hard work, but it has been a lot of fun and the best part is the interesting people we've gotten to meet," says Kiki of Gus's Azalea Manor Courtyard. “Lots of blood, sweat, tears and laughs," adds Gus. They both agree that the endeavor has been worth the effort.
Mobilians and visitors alike are fortunate to have this pair creating wonderful meals, sweets and atmosphere in downtown Mobile!
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Sunshine by the Stars: Celebrating Louisiana Music
Capitol Beat
Against the Tide: The Story of the Acadian People
Forever LSU
Morris Lessmore and the Amazing World of Moonbot Studios
The Five-Star Holiday Tastes of the South cookbook features more than 500 recipes from viewers in the four participating states including the recipes prepared on the show.
Community® Coffee and CC’s™ Coffee Houses are proud to underwrite programming on Louisiana Public Broadcasting. The generous support of businesses like Community Coffee helps defray the cost of the programs you see on LPB and make possible productions such as A 5 Star Holiday Taste of the South. Please think of these important members of the LPB family when you decide which businesses to patronize and which products to purchase.
