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Seven James Beard Awards later, this New Orleans restaurant still trains tomorrow’s celebrity chefs

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Commander’s Palace: America’s Premier Chef Training Ground

In 1975, Commander’s Palace in New Orleans took a bold step.

They hired Paul Prudhomme, their first American-born chef, who mixed Cajun and Creole cooking in ways no one had tried.

Soon after, a young Emeril Lagasse took over, working brutal 18-hour days before he became a TV star. Then came Jamie Shannon, who built a training system so tough that chefs had to master every job in the kitchen.

The restaurant has since won seven James Beard Awards and trained over a dozen famous chefs. The storied turquoise building in the Garden District still serves as America’s most famous culinary school.

Paul Prudhomme Broke the European Chef Mold

Paul Prudhomme walked into Commander’s Palace in 1975 and changed American food forever.

The Louisiana native became the first American-born head chef at the famous New Orleans restaurant, ending its habit of hiring only European chefs.

Ella Brennan took a big risk putting a local chef in charge. Prudhomme used local ingredients and seasonal cooking long before it was cool.

Garden District regulars quickly fell in love with his cooking that mixed down-home Cajun flavors with fancy Creole cooking.

Local Flavors Put Commander’s on the National Map

Prudhomme made Commander’s Palace the hottest spot in New Orleans with fun menu items like “debris” (tasty bits from pot roast) and “Cajun popcorn” (fried crawfish tails).

The restaurant filled up months ahead as word spread about this new American cooking style. Local politicians showed up nightly, and food critics loved dishes that told stories of Louisiana culture.

American regional cooking stood strong against European traditions, and Commander’s Palace became the place ambitious American chefs wanted to work.

Emeril Learned the Hard Way

Emeril Lagasse took over from Prudhomme in 1982 when he was just 23 years old. The young chef from Massachusetts worked tough 18-hour days for seven and a half years straight.

He learned everything about running a fancy restaurant, from managing kitchen staff to creating seasonal menus. The job was so demanding that his marriage ended in 1986.

Commander’s Palace became Emeril’s real-life cooking school, teaching him not just cooking but also business skills he later used to build his own restaurant empire.

TV Cameras Turned the Kitchen into a Studio

Great Chefs TV crews came to Commander’s Palace in 1988 to film Emeril Lagasse for PBS cooking shows. The restaurant kitchen turned into a makeshift TV studio as cooking shows gained fans.

Jamie Shannon, working as Emeril’s second-in-command, watched from the background during these early shoots.

These TV spots spread Commander’s Palace’s name across America.

The media spotlight helped boost New Orleans cuisine to national fame and turned the restaurant’s chefs into cooking stars before the Food Network even existed.

Jamie Shannon Climbed Every Rung of the Ladder

Jamie Shannon started at Commander’s Palace in 1984 as a sauce cook under Emeril Lagasse. When Lagasse left to open his own restaurant in 1990, he suggested Shannon as his replacement.

The New Jersey native moved step by step through every job in the kitchen: sauce cook to sous chef to executive sous chef.

Shannon became head chef in 1991 at age 30, keeping up the training tradition that had shaped him. His promotion showed how Commander’s Palace grew its talent from within rather than bringing in outside stars.

Awards Piled Up Like Clean Plates

Food & Wine magazine called Commander’s Palace America’s #1 Restaurant in 1995 under Shannon’s leadership. The James Beard Foundation gave the restaurant its “Most Outstanding Restaurant” award in 1996.

Shannon himself won the James Beard Award for Best Chef Southeast in 1999. Robb Report ranked Shannon as the “Number 2 Chef in the World,” bringing worldwide attention to this New Orleans restaurant.

These awards confirmed what New Orleans locals already knew: Commander’s Palace had become the center of American cooking excellence and chef training.

The Kitchen Became a Culinary Boot Camp

Shannon created a tough “career ladder” training system that made chefs master every single kitchen station.

New cooks started with basic vegetable prep, then moved through sauce-making, fish, meat, and finally cooking staff meals before moving up.

This system created well-rounded chefs who could handle any kitchen challenge. Graduates opened successful restaurants throughout New Orleans and beyond.

The restaurant got the nickname “CIA of the South” for its complete cooking education that matched formal cooking schools.

Cancer Cut Short a Brilliant Career

Jamie Shannon died of cancer in 2001 at just 40 years old, shocking the food world.

Shannon left behind the cookbook “Commander’s Kitchen” and a refined training system. His step-by-step approach to developing chefs became part of the restaurant’s culture.

Commander’s Palace moved forward with its mission to train the next generation of American chefs despite losing such a key leader at the peak of his career.

Tory McPhail Started at the Bottom

Tory McPhail first walked into Commander’s Palace kitchen at age 19, starting at the lowest job possible. The Washington state native worked his way through all 12 levels of the kitchen over several years.

McPhail gained experience in Florida, London, the Virgin Islands, and Las Vegas before coming back to New Orleans.

He became head chef in 2002 and stayed for 19 years. McPhail brought Pacific Northwest farm-to-table ideas to traditional Louisiana Creole cooking.

Hurricane Katrina Couldn’t Stop the Culinary Machine

McPhail won the James Beard Award for Best Chef South in 2013, adding to the restaurant’s impressive collection of seven James Beard Foundation Awards.

Under his leadership, Commander’s Palace served about 1,200 diners daily while keeping its strict training standards.

McPhail guided the restaurant through the devastating aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.

Southern Living magazine called Commander’s Palace the “Best Splurge Restaurant in the South” as it continued to set the standard for fine dining in the region.

The Alumni Network Spreads Across America

Commander’s Palace alumni include famous chefs Frank Brigtsen, Anne Kearney, Greg and Mary Sonnier among hundreds of others who learned their craft in this kitchen.

Commander’s Palace maintains its dual role as both a working restaurant and an unofficial culinary academy. Multiple generations of chefs credit their time at Commander’s Palace with launching their successful careers.

The restaurant’s influence on American cuisine extends far beyond New Orleans through this network of trained chefs who carry its traditions to restaurants nationwide.

Visiting Commander’s Palace, Louisiana

Commander’s Palace at 1403 Washington Avenue has trained celebrity chefs like Paul Prudhomme, Emeril Lagasse, Jamie Shannon, and Tory McPhail since 1975 under the Brennan family.

Executive Chef Meg Bickford now runs the kitchen that earned seven James Beard Awards. The Chef’s Table costs $150-275 per person with a $150 deposit.

You need reservations through Tock (2026 bookings open August 1, 2025 at 10 AM). Wear business attire with closed-toe shoes.

This article was created with AI assistance and human editing.

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John Ghost is a professional writer and SEO director. He graduated from Arizona State University with a BA in English (Writing, Rhetorics, and Literacies). As he prepares for graduate school to become an English professor, he writes weird fiction, plays his guitars, and enjoys spending time with his wife and daughters. He lives in the Valley of the Sun. Learn more about John on Muck Rack.

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