Homecoming Chef Feature: Louis LaRose Written on June 6, 2018. Louis LaRose began working in Jackson area restaurants in the early 1990’s. After learning the basics of the trade at POET’S, Sam’s Westside, and Mik & Mot’s, Louis took a line cook job at BRAVO! After a couple of years honing his skills and learning to work all the stations he decided that culinary school was a real option. Dan encouraged Louis to do this: “Rarely have I met someone who has the natural abilities that Louis has. He plays at a level far above most. Like a world class hockey player, Louis skates to where the puck is going, not where it is. In a kitchen, this skill separates the great from the average. It was right for Louis to pack up and move to Miami and get a world-class education and experience. I supported him 100% even though it meant losing his skill in our kitchen.” Louis attended Johnson & Wales University in North Miami, Florida, and spent nights and weekends practicing what he was learning in many area restaurants including Mark’s Las Olas. Louis kept in touch with Dan & Jeff while away. He accepted an offer from them to return to Jackson and took the job of BRAVO! Sous Chef. After a few intense months of work he was promoted to Chef. This was a huge change for BRAVO! in that Dan was the founding (and only) chef since BRAVO!’s opening in 1994… this would be the first time that Dan would not be in control. “It was a great decision and Louis honored the foundation that Dan had laid but he took us in a new direction and our guests loved it. We are so fortunate that Louis spent 12 years at the helm, and there are countless men and women who learned under him and are now successful in their own right,” Jeff shares. In 2010, having achieved everything he wanted at BRAVO!, Louis accepted a job as Chef for Derek Emerson’s new restaurant Local 463 Urban Kitchen in Madison, Mississippi. He worked alongside Derek and Jennifer Emerson as they prepared for the restaurant’s opening and helped to develop the menu for the kitchen. In 2011 Louis took a brief hiatus from the kitchen and worked as a sales associate for SYSCO Jackson Food Service while he and wife Victoria were expecting the arrival of their son, Brooks. After about a year away from the kitchen, Louis took a job as executive chef for the Mississippi Museum of Art. While working there, Louis’ own ambitions rekindled and he began to think about opening his own place. Over the next two years, Louis got all the pieces in place to secure a name and location and for his restaurant. With the approval of an SBA loan from Trustmark, Lou’s Full-Serv was able to come to life. Louis & Victoria opened Lou’s Full-Serv in the Historic Belhaven District in September of 2014. Lou’s is a Southern “+” (plus) restaurant with a warehouse industrial décor that offers casual fine dining experience. Family owned and operated, Lou’s hopes to ‘Serv’ the Metro area for years to come. Louis’ featured dish for our Homecoming Dinner: Campanelle “Carbonara:” campanelle / crisped pork belly / charred radicchio / oyster mushrooms / farm egg / cream To read more about our Homecoming Dinner and see the rest of the menu click here. Tags:
