'Queen Of Creole Cuisine' Also Recognized As Civil Rights Leader

WDSU NEW ORLEANS (7/1/09) -- The Queen of Creole cuisine has received top honors from the Southern Food and Beverage Museum.

The Leah Chase Louisiana Gallery was dedicated Wednesday

In addition to her name adorning the walls, artifacts from Chase's kitchen, along with one of the colorful chef jackets she is known for wearing, are also on display.

A painting depicting Chase's restaurant, Dooky Chase, following Hurricane Katrina hangs from the gallery's ceiling.

"She's given her whole life to food and has made it so open to people," said Southern Food and Beverage President Liz Williams. "She really made people know about the food in New Orleans and Louisiana."

Friends and family of Chase, along with fellow chefs, praised the culinary legend in a ceremony honoring her life and work.

"I just do what I do," said Chase. "What they talk about is just what I do everyday. I expect nothing in return for what I do. This is really unbelievable . . ."

In the heart of the Treme, you'll rediscover authentic Creole cuisine at Dooky Chase.

Offering a collection of delectable recipes which have delighted patrons and friends for decades, Dooky Chase Restaurant became known as the gathering place during the 1960s. Among the many in the Civil Rights movement and entertainment industry who have tasted her unique recipes which reflects her Creole heritage are; Count Basie, Sarah Vaughn, Leana Horne, Duke Ellington, Cab Calloway, the Jackson Five, President John F. Kennedy, Reverend Jesse Jackson, Mayor Ernest "Dutch" Morial ..., and now President-elect Barack Obama.

"Dooky Chase's has been here so long ...We started in 1939, right across the street, the Globe Sandwich Shop. We opened when segregation was still in the South, and we always had big crowds here. It was a meeting place, and if a person needed to see someone in the black community, they'd come here, because this was where everyone met." - Leah Chase

Leah Chase has been cooking in New Orleans since 1946 at Dooky Chase's Restaurant. She was named to the Lafcadio Hearn Hall of Honor, Nicholls State University's John Folse Culinary Institute. Chase received the Candace Award, the Freedom Foundation Award, the NAACP Human Understanding and A.P. Tureaud Awards, the Times Picayune Loving Cup and the Weiss Award from The National Conference of Christians and Jews.

She is the author of Still I Cook and the Dooky Chase Cookbook .

New Orleans we know you have been waiting for the return of DOOKY CHASE and now they are Back!

Daily Lunch Specials from $6.95 - $ 21.95:

• Creole Gumbo
• Stewed Okra
• Candy Yams
• Mustard Greens
• Red Beans & Rice
• Baked Macaroni
• Fried Seafood Plate
• Fried Chicken Plate
• A La Carte Vegetable
• Stuffed Shrimp with Crab Meat

Top it all off with our award winning Peach Cobbler or our classic New Orleans-styled Bread Pudding.

RSVP (504) 821-0535 for an incredible array of creole and soul food in a restaurant atmosphere full of local art.

Open for Take Out; Tuesday - Friday, 11:00 AM to 7:00 PM

"After revving up the crowd at Tulane University, Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama got down-home in New Orleans -- first with students at a 9th Ward elementary school, then with a bowl of gumbo at Dooky Chase's restaurant in Treme..." David Hammer, The Times-Picayune