JON GIBSON WHEELHOUSE OPP *ASPA’S 2017 CHEF OF THE YEAR* Chef Jon Gibson started his culinary career “flippin’ burgers” at the local Hardee’s restaurant and kept moving by trying his hands at tossing pizza dough at the local Domino’s and Pizza Hut. Chef Gibson has always been in or near the restaurant business by either…

First through train from Houston, Texas, to New Orleans, Louisiana, upon the opening of Morgan’s Louisiana and Texas Railroad (1880)   In our day and age, we often don’t appreciate how easy it is to access the superior taste of wild-caught, American shrimp. From the aisles of our local grocery stores to docks populated by…

Jack Hemmenway is the owner and longstanding patriarch of JBS Packing Company, Inc. located in Port Arthur, Texas. A conversation with him is a one-of-a-kind experience. Jack has dedicated his life to the shrimp industry and the collection of stories he can tell will either make you laugh, cry, or just be incredibly thankful to…

Frozen wild-caught American shrimp are conveniently always available in your freezer after you’ve bought them, but do you know the proper way to thaw them before using them in your favorite dishes? There are numerous factors to consider, but once you’ve got the process down-pat, it’s quick and easy to thaw shrimp for all of…

Al Marmande, third-generation owner of Al’s Shrimp Company in Theriot, Louisiana, lays a special claim to shrimp fame as one of the oldest continuing shrimp drying operations in the United States. The Marmande family, which was one of the original French families in the south Louisiana area, can trace its roots all the way back…

It’s time for another Fun Fact Friday! Did you know? Allegedly, the largest shrimp ever caught measured nearly 16 inches and was purchased for $800 by a Colombian biologist! Here’s how the story goes. According to UnderwaterTimes.com, in the middle of April 2006 in Cartagena, Colombia — right on the coast of the Caribbean Sea…

JAMES APTAKIN LAYERS OF FLAVOR If there had been a Junior Master Chef Competition when James Aptakin was ten-years-old, there is no question that he would have won the big prize. Baking shortbread and jam cookies at the age of eight and making complete dinners for family and friends by 5th grade, James was on…

MIKE KOERNER CHEZ MIKEY Chef Mike Koerner was born and raised in Deerfield, Illinois, and was exposed to a wide array of cultures early on. Culinary excellence was in Mike’s DNA with Swedish, Italian, and Hungarian blood. His Italian grandmother was the first to take Mike under her wing and teach the basics of Italian…

Many processing plants that line the Gulf and South Atlantic have a family lineage rooted deep in multiple generations. In the case of Fisherman’s Reef in Beaumont, Texas, it’s more like a culinary lineage: from donut shop to bakery, hamburger joint to catfish restaurants, a few other ventures in between, and then shrimp processing. It’s…

A shrimp swimming underwater Shrimp School is now in session! Did you know that shrimp swim backward? It’s true! Shrimp may be little guys (with full-grown shrimp only measuring about three to nine inches in length), but they’ve still got places to be! So, when they’re scuttling around through the ocean, why do they do…

When it came to working in shrimp factories in the late 19th to early 20th century, everything operated under a unique set of rules, and how people were paid was no exception: instead of being paid in standard United States currency, factory workers were paid in units of currency referred to either broadly as tokens…

JOHN CURRENCE CITY GROCERY RESTAURANT GROUP Chef John Currence was born and raised in New Orleans, LA to a family that loved to cook and spend time in the kitchen. His mother’s travels with his father during his childhood, combined with the family’s several years in Europe, brought the dishes of the world to their…

For more than 125 years and through four generations, the Paul Piazza & Son family has been providing Premium, Wild-Caught Gulf Shrimp to customers throughout the United States. From the beginning, the company has always worked to be the perfect partner for its customers and continues that tradition to this day. “Our objective is to…

Here’s a fun shrimp fact: shrimp hearts are located in their heads! Looks like shrimp don’t have to choose when it comes to going with their head or their heart! But what is the reason for this crustacean’s curious body composition? The answer, of course, comes down to biology: which means that Shrimp School is…

AUSTIN SUMRALL WHITE PILLARS Austin Sumrall, the chef-owner of White Pillars has been working in restaurants for many years and has had a passion for cooking most of his life. Austin grew up in McComb, Mississippi, and went on to graduate from the University of Mississippi with a degree in Hotel and Restaurant Management. He…

Gulf Island Shrimp in Dulac, Louisiana, is comprised of two plants — Scottco and SeaTang — located right across the bayou from each other in Terrebonne Parish. In the shrimp industry, many processors come from a multi-generation, hands-on background, but that isn’t the case for Gulf Island. Although not a family-owned operation, that has never…