Take pleasure in limitless bites at this yr’s Southern Smoke Competition.
The Southern Smoke Basis, a Houston-based nonprofit that gives assets to meals and hospitality staff nationwide, is gearing up for its annual meals pageant, which doubles as its largest and most anticipated fundraiser.
On Saturday, October 4, greater than 85 cooks, beverage professionals, and hospitality staff will showcase their culinary abilities at Discovery Inexperienced, serving Houstonians and guests alike limitless samples of their creations.
Launched in 2015 by James Beard Award–successful chef Chris Shepherd and Lindsey Brown, govt director of Southern Smoke, the pageant, now in its ninth yr, simply retains getting higher. This yr marks the return of the Lexus VIP space, wine bar pop-ups, a YETI Culinary stage stuffed with stay demonstrations, and an introduction to the 2025 Class of Meals & Wine’s Greatest New Cooks.
No matter you do, with so many decisions from dozens of cooks, it’s important to go hungry and tempo your self (some even deliver a disposable tray to carry all of the dishes). Right here’s a peek at a few of the most anticipated bites from eight new cooks.
Houston cooks
Nicolas Vera and Stephanie Velasquez from Casaema
Two cooks behind this 2025 James Beard Finalist for Greatest New Restaurant are bringing their abilities and reverence for masa to this yr’s Southern Smoke. Vera and Velasquez will make their pageant debut with a chicharron bocol olotillo (masa flour) blanco masa cake topped with chicharron pork stomach and served with pickled curtido, a tangy fermented slaw.
Adrian Torres of Maximo
This 27-year-old chef is making waves in Houston’s eating scene following the revamp of West College Mexican restaurant Maximo. Festivalgoers can get a style of Torres’s expertise together with his cachetada de barbacoa, tacos made with beef cheek that can be pressed right into a plancha (griddle) to provide every chunk a little bit of a crisp, whereas protecting the within tender and fatty. Torres will garnish the dish with black garlic salsa tatemada (charred), and a inexperienced avocado salsa with onion, cilantro, and lime. If any indication of the flavour, simply know the Spanish phrase cachetada actually interprets to “slaps,” an English slang phrase for “superb.”
Jason Ryczek of Little’s Oyster Bar
Seafood lovers, this one’s for you. Chef Ryczek is protecting it easy, but appetizing and really Houston with a smoked foie gras positioned on a dry-aged tuna banh mi.
Aaron Bludorn of Bludorn
Head over to the YETI Culinary Stage to see Bludorn’s chef abilities stay as he prepares a Shore Lunch, made up of pan-fried flounder and creamy wild mushroom risotto.
Out-of-towners
Kelly Jacques of Ayu Bakehouse
The co-owner of New Orleans’s Ayu Bakehouse, who’s additionally one among Meals & Wine’s Greatest New Cooks this yr, will serve her Boudin Boys, made full with Lao Gan Ma chili oil.
Tracy Malechek-Ezekiel of Birdie’s
The chef behind Austin-based restaurant Birdie’s will current roasted candy potatoes topped with a walnut-parmesan cream and parsley gremolata.
Joaquin Rodas of Bacchanal Wonderful Wine & Spirits
Rodas, the chef-owner of Bacchanal, will swap issues up this yr with a full buildout from the New Orleans–primarily based wine bar, full with wine, shaded seating, and duck fats confit rooster thighs served with grits and persimmon agrodolce.
Tyler Akin of Bastia
Making the trek from Philadelphia, Akin will share a slice of his Fishtown restaurant, which takes inspiration from Corsica and Sardinia within the Mediterranean. Seize a chunk of his featured plate, which incorporates New Caledonian prawn and scallop served with Venere black rice, a wholegrain rice that hails from Italy.
Normal admission tickets are at present $225 and could be purchased right here.
