There’s no better place to explore the evolution of Southern cuisine than Mississippi. Join us on a culinary adventure featuring some of the Deep South state’s favorite bites and chefs from Jackson, Mississippi.
Chaz Lindsay – Pulito Osteria, Executive Chef and Owner
A Belhaven native, chef Chaz Lindsay’s returns to his hometown bringing together sophisticated Italian cuisine and the Deep South with the opening of his debut restaurant, Pulito Osteria. While Lindsay’s culinary career began humbly working in a local Belhaven pizza shack as a teenager, it was there he set his sights on honing his knife skills and enrolling in the Culinary Institute of America in New York. Upon graduating in 2011, Lindsay worked in some of the most acclaimed kitchens in New York, including Craft, Colicchio and Sons, and Eleven Madison Park. Looking for his next adventure and a deeper appreciation of Italian cuisine, Lindsay traveled abroad to cook in a restaurant just outside of Rome. Pulito Osteria is a full circle moment for Lindsay, serving as Executive Chef and Owner and bringing together his family roots in Jackson while offering diners a fresh take on Italian-inspired dishes in a warm, welcoming setting.
Get the recipe: Chaz Lindsay’s Calabrian Chili Braised Collard Greens
Joseph Sambou – Sambou’s African Kitchen, Owner
Joseph Sambou immigrated to the United States from the small West African nation of The Gambia in 2007, along with his mother, Sally Demba, and his two sisters – Bibian and Mary Sambou. Upon arriving in Mississippi, Joseph and his family were disappointed by the lack of representation of African cuisine in the Mississippi and were determined to correct that. Several years later, Joseph returned to Mississippi from New York after completing his graduate program in Public Administration and Public Policy and set out to fulfil the family promise of bringing African food to Mississippi.
Although Joseph was more of an academic than a culinary artist, he couldn’t pass up the opportunity to introduce the delicious African cuisine he and his family enjoyed in The Gambia for many years. Banking on his mother and sister’s traditional African culinary training, Joseph opened Sambou’s African kitchen. The food is mostly West African, and the flavors tend to be bold and fresh. They use beans, seafood, meats, and garden-fresh ingredients that all blend layers of flavorful taste.
Discover more at visitjackson.com.