Scuttlebutt: Scott Varnedoe invited back to James Beard … LRA names 2011 ‘Restaurant Legend’

Back to Beard: Scott Varnedoe, executive chef of the newly rebranded Stroubes Seafood and Steaks downtown, has been invited back for a second year as a guest chef at the prestigious James Beard House in New York. The James Beard House is a nonprofit membership organization which supports America’s culinary community, and an invitation to cook for its members—who include Wolfgang Puck, Emeril Lagasse and Mario Batali—is considered a high honor for any chef. To be invited back twice in a row means Varnedoe’s unique “upscale down south”-style food made a major impression. The menu for the dinner will highlight his cooking with combinations like duck and oyster gumbo with green onion, pecan, and wild dirty rice-stuffed quail breast, and Asian-Cajun surf and turf—Asian spiced and blackened Gulf of Mexico tuna with pickled mirliton, house-made duck prosciutto, sweet-and-spicy kumquat-soy reduction, and sesame dust. Fans of his cooking can find similar delicious dishes every day on the Stroubes menu, all locally or sustainably-sourced. Legendary skills: The folks behind the scenes are the ones who get the glory with the Louisiana Restaurant Association’s annual Restaurant Legend Award: it’s designed to recognize the long-term dedication of employees who make up the backbone of the restaurant industry, those who’ve logged 20 or more years of service at one food service establishment. Former winners have included managers, waitresses, hostesses and bartenders—the unsung heroes who can make or break a guest’s restaurant experience. This year’s winner is Jeanette Eisworth, manager of Don’s Seafood and Steak House. An employee since 1970—40 years at the venerable seafood restaurant—Eisworth is familiar with all aspects of its operation, from ordering food to hiring employees and every responsibility in between. She also cares about Don’s customers, greeting regulars by name—and regulars know to greet her back!