Shrimp Tales

  • Happy National Shrimp Day!

    Happy National Shrimp Day from Wild American Shrimp! Today, we’re celebrating everything we love about wild American shrimp caught in the sunny waters of the Gulf of Mexico and South Atlantic Ocean by American shrimpers and processors, and we encourage you to do the same! To get you started, check out some of our favorite…

    Read More May 10, 2022
  • ASPA Member Feature: Gulf Pride Enterprises, Inc.

    Gulf Pride Enterprises, Inc. is naturally all about one thing: pride. It’s a word that represents the 60-year-old family-operated Biloxi business well — a company now run by owner Wally Gollott. Not only does the name signify a high standard of quality for the 50,000 pounds of wild-caught Gulf shrimp processed daily during the season,…

    Read More May 6, 2022
  • How to Create Your Own Recipes with Chef Robert St. John

    Robert St. John, a Wild American Shrimp Chef Advocate, writes a weekly column with topics ranging from traveling tips to cooking advice and recipes. Here is one of his columns on recipe development and how he created one of his most popular dishes. ~~~ Recipe inspiration comes from many places. Sometimes it’s a thought out of thin…

  • Chef Advocate Highlight: Rob Stinson

    ROB STINSON THE REEF Chef Rob Stinson attended Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, majoring in business management. He trained under Cordon Bleu Chef Gerald Thabuis; former Chef for President of France, Charles DeGaulle; Master Italian Chef Ciro Cuomo, and Creole Chef Nathaniel Burton. Stinson is executive chef and owner of three award-winning restaurants on the…

    Read More April 29, 2022
  • ASPA Member Feature: Philly Seafood Co.

    Founded in 2000 but with years of shrimping history before that, Philly Seafood Co. is family-owned and operated by the Garcias. The patriarch – Edward Garcia, Sr. – has been shrimping since he was a teenager and was the first Hispanic Gulf shrimp boat owner in Matagorda Bay, Texas. Today, with his daughter Regina running…

  • Chef Advocate Highlight: Aaron Cuschieri

    AARON CUSCHIERI THE DEARBORN After working under a number of the country’s most acclaimed chefs throughout the last decade of his career, Detroit native Aaron Cuschieri steps up for the very first time as an independent Executive Chef launching his own vision at The Dearborn in Chicago. An urban American tavern owned and operated by…

    Read More April 22, 2022
  • ASPA Member Feature: Dean Blanchard Seafood, Inc.

    Dean Blanchard Seafood is one of the largest shrimp distributors in the United States. Their advantageous location in Grand Isle, Louisiana is a convenient stop for countless shrimpers that have unloaded at the dock for more than 30 years. This fishing town full of heritage and history is a Mississippi River Delta barrier island that…

  • Chef Advocate Highlight: Eric Lackey

    Eric Lackey Smuggler’s Restaurants and Bars Eric Lackey is an award-winning chef with over 25 years of experience in fine dining, currently serving as Executive Chef and Managing Director of Smuggler’s Restaurants and Bars. He worked as the Executive Chef of Ulele in Tampa, Florida, the Grill at Feather Sound and Grillmarks in Largo, as well…

    Read More April 15, 2022
  • ASPA Member Feature: Indian Ridge Shrimp Company

    Andrew Blanchard is a wealth of knowledge when it comes to the history of the shrimp industry in Chauvin, Louisiana. He was born and raised in the area, and his distinguishable Cajun accent is a reflection of the cultural heritage still celebrated in this small town located on the water in Terrebonne Parish. This industry…

  • Chef Advocate Highlight: David Dickensauge

    DAVID DICKENSAUGE BEAUSOLEIL COASTAL CUISINE David Dickensauge has scaled great culinary heights to learn from the best in the restaurant industry. Over twenty years after venturing out on his own, he is blazing his own path as chef of Beausoleil Coastal Cuisine in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Beginning in New Orleans, he worked under James Beard Award-winner…

    Read More April 8, 2022
  • ASPA Member Feature: Captain’s Fine Foods, LLC

    Captain’s Fine Foods was founded by businessman Mac Chen, who grew up in his family’s successful seafood business. He emigrated with his family to the United States from Taiwan in 1976 but didn’t like the climate in Chicago so he and his family, including young daughter Irene, moved South to Tampa, a city whose history…

  • Chef Advocate Highlight: Geraldo Bayona

    GERALDO BAYONA COLUMBIA RESTAURANT Geraldo Bayona (Chef Jerry) is based at the flagship, over 115-year-old Columbia Restaurant℠ in Tampa’s historic Ybor City, which remains Florida’s oldest restaurant, where he has worked for over 20 years. Fourth-generation co-owner and Columbia Restaurant Group President, Richard Gonzmart, has turned to Chef Jerry to help create menu items and…

    Read More April 1, 2022
  • ASPA Member Feature: Wood’s Fisheries

    The Wood family has been fishing in the sleepy Gulf Coast town of Port St. Joe, Florida since 1860. When it comes to seafood, the Woods have done it all. They caught mullet to make oil and hopped on board a shrimp boat soon after diesel engines became available. Although Wood’s Fisheries is a fifth-generation…

  • Chef Advocate Highlight: Mike Lata

    Mike Lata is Chef/Partner of FIG Restaurant in Charleston, SC, which he opened in 2003 with Partner Adam Nemirow. FIG has been consistently voted “Best Restaurant in Charleston” by Charleston City Paper readers and continues to be a favorite local destination, and in 2014, the restaurant was nominated in 2014 and 2015 for Outstanding Wine…

    Read More March 25, 2022
  • ASPA Member Feature: Mariah Jade Shrimp Co.

    David and Kim Chauvin are big visionaries, currently owning three businesses in Dulac, Louisiana: David Chauvin Seafood Company, the Bluewater individually quick frozen (IQF) shrimp-processing plant and Mariah Jade Shrimp Co. The name Mariah Jade carries significant meaning for obvious reasons to the Chauvin family. Not only is it the name of the family’s 73-foot trawler…

  • Chef Advocate Highlight: Robert St. John

    ROBERT ST. JOHN NEW SOUTH RESTAURANT GROUP Chef, Author, Restaurateur & World-Class Eater. Robert St. John has spent almost four decades in the restaurant business. Thirty-two of those years have been as the owner, CEO and Executive Chef of the Purple Parrot Seafood & Steaks, Crescent City Grill, Mahogany Bar, Branch, Tabella, and Ed’s Burger…

    Read More March 18, 2022