George Graham, Acadiana Table food blogger, author and President of the Graham Group exudes passion: for life, for the rich culinary heritage of Cajun and Creole Cooking, for photography, and for Lafayette....the place he calls home.

Graham began his award-winning Acadiana Table food blog in 2012 which eventually led to a collection of stories and recipes published in his cookbook, Acadiana Table: Cajun and Creole Home Cooking from the Heart of Louisiana. Louisiana's cultural cuisine is brought to life in this breathtaking book which evokes all the delicious reasons people love to visit Louisiana. In fact, Graham shared that research has proven that the #1 reason people come to Louisiana and why they want to return is our food.

In this Discover Lafayette interview, George Graham discusses his adventure with food, which began with his first "dish," a grilled cheese sandwich he made when he was five years old!  Growing up in Bogalusa, he literally stirred the pot in his dad's restaurant, the Acme Cafe. After college, George worked with the Lafayette-based Chart House group, a publicly held corporation and the owner of over 500 restaurants throughout the U. S. According to Graham, one of the reasons Lafayette has spawned such a very robust restaurant culture is because so many people employed by Chart House have gone on to develop their own restaurant concepts.

His curiosity about unique cultures and their food dishes led him to travel with food in mind.  It was during a trip to Provence, France that he realized the region's farm to table, fresh approach to its cuisine mirrored the focus on fresh food enjoyed right here at home, in Acadiana. Our own "butchers, bakers and boudin makers" live out South Louisiana's rich heritage which Graham believes should be cherished and preserved.

A self-taught photographer, Graham launched his brand, Acadiana Table, which visually and verbally documents his delight in the recipes and stories of our "one of a kind food culture" right here in South Louisiana.  I can promise you, hearing George Graham's story and experiencing his loving attention to detail found in Acadiana Table will ignite your appetite for all things Cajun and Creole.  Bon Appetit!

For more information on George Graham and Acadiana Table, please visit https://acadianatable.com.