Texas Chef Jesse Cavazos to Battle for the Title King or Queen of American Seafood

Louisiana Lieutenant Governor Billy Nungesser and the Louisiana Seafood Promotion and Marketing Board are excited to welcome Texas Chef Jesse Cavazos of Nick's Fish Dive & Oyster Bar in The Woodlands to face-off against 12 other chefs from around the country to the nation's ultimate seafood cooking competition. Chef Jesse Cavazos is a graduate of The Art Institute of Dallas. After graduating, he worked for six years at the popular W Hotel Restaurant, CRAFT in Dallas, Texas. Starting as a line cook at CRAFT, he would eventually work his way up the chain of command to Sous Chef, under the direction of Executive Celebrity Chef Tom Colicchio. His style is heavily influenced by the time he spent working under Chef Colicchio and he added his creative flair to the menu at Nick's Fish Dive & Oyster Bar in The Woodlands, TX. Cavazos has consecutively placed in the Top 3 at Wine & Food Week's Wine Rendezvous Grand Tasting & Chef Showcase event.

The 2021 Great American Seafood Cook-Off will be held at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center in New Orleans on Saturday, August 7. The 17th annual event gets underway with Opening Ceremonies at 11:30 a.m. as 13 chefs, each representing their home state or territory, cook in front of a live audience and a panel of nationally acclaimed judges.

Following a challenging year for all of us, the Great American Seafood Cook-Off is the perfect stage to celebrate Louisiana and America's domestic seafood industry—the best in the world, said Louisiana Lt. Governor Billy Nungesser. This year we are excited to welcome a very talented field of chefs from all over the country vying to be crowned the next 'King or Queen of American Seafood' right here in New Orleans. Each chef will be showcasing their skills with domestic seafood to present the best seafood dishes.

The 2021 Great American Seafood Cook-Off competitors are:

Chef Scott Simpson; The Depot, Auburn, AL
Chef Wes Choy; Alyseka Resort Kitchens; Girdwood, AK
Chef Edgar Teran; Someburros Restaurant; Phoenix, AZ
Chef Jordan Scott; Perdido Key Breakfast Club; Pensacola, FL
Chef Peter Duenas; Meskla Chamoru Fusion Bistro; Hagatna, Guam
Chef Robert Vasquez; Forks & Corks; Covington, LA
Chef Leon Vuong; Seven Seas Food & Company; Portland, ME
Chef Denise Herrera; Red Heat Tavern; Boston, MA
Chef Austin Sumrall; White Pillars Restaurant; Biloxi, MS
Chef Tory McPhail; Revelry Plate + Pour; Bozeman, MT
Chef Jackie Paige; Love Rocks Café; McKees Rocks, PA
Chef Nicholas Huckabee; A Difference in Dining; Myrtle Beach, SC
Chef Jesse Cavazos; Nick's Fish Dive + Oyster Bar; The Woodlands, TX

During the competition, each chef will prepare a dish highlighting the use of domestic seafood while interacting with the live audience, celebrity hosts Chef Cory Bahr—Food Network Star Finalist, Food Network Chopped! Champion, and a former King of Louisiana Seafood—and KLFY TV10's Gerald Gruenig, and chef ref Chef Michael Brewer, also a former King of Louisiana Seafood. Each dish will be presented to a panel of nationally renowned judges who will score based on presentation, creativity, composition, craftsmanship, and flavor. The Great American Seafood Cook-Off promotes the quality and variety of domestic seafood found in the United States.

To be eligible to compete in the event, chefs must either hold the current title of King or Queen of Seafood or be appointed by the lieutenant governor of their respective state or territory. The reigning King of American Seafood, Louisiana's Chef Nathan Richard of Cuvée Wine Bar & Bistro, won the title with his dish of ;Cracklin-crusted Red Snapper with pickled crawfish tails, buttermilk chili consommé, spring vegetables, burnt leek oil, fermented cream, and bowfin caviar, knocking out 11 of the nation's best chefs.

The event is held in conjunction with the Louisiana Restaurant Association Foodservice Expo. Tickets are $10 at the door.

Previous winners of the Great American Seafood Cook-Off include: