Chef John Currence, City Grocery Restaurant Group

Currence was born and raised in New Orleans, LA to a family that loved to cook and spend time in the kitchen.  His mother’s travels with his father during his childhood brought the dishes of the world to their dinner table.  Time spent hunting and fishing in South Louisiana began the education in the foods of his home. His first cooking job was while working offshore as a deckhand on a tugboat in the Gulf of Mexico.  Currence saw his first kitchen job while in school at UNC where he started washing dishes at Bill Neal’s Crook’s Corner.  An immediate fascination with the business prompted several supplemental jobs (baking bread at an Italian restaurant, butcher shop at a local grocery store, salmon smokehouse, etc) and ultimately led to his return to New Orleans to help a high school friend, Larkin Selman open Gautreau’s.  He moved on to the Brennan family of restaurants to open Bacco before finally settling in Oxford in 1992 and opening City Grocery.  In the time since the City Grocery Restaurant Group has seen a number of openings, including Nacho Mama’s, Kalo’s, Ajax Diner, City Grocery Catering Company, Bouré, Big Bad Breakfast and Snackbar.  He was awarded the James Beard Foundation medal for Best Chef South for 2009 and was the 2008 winner of the Great American Seafood Cookoff in New Orleans and the 2009 Charleston Food and Wine Festival’s Iron Chef Challenge.

He is a contributing editor for Garden and Gun magazine and an avid outdoorsman who enjoys bird hunting of all varieties, fishing and golf. 

Chef Brian Deloney, Maddie's Place

Chef Brian Deloney graduated from the prestigious Culinary Institute of America in New York. He has since honed his culinary skills at fine restaurants across America including Austin, New Orleans, Las Vegas and Little Rock. As an Executive Sous Chef for Emeril Lagasse for almost ten years—first at NOLA Restaurant in the French Quarter and then at Delmonico Steakhouse in the Venetian Resort/Hotel/Casino in Las Vegas—Deloney learned the business and polished his skills in high-energy that attracted locals and celebrities.

Deloney returned to Little Rock in 2007. January of 2009 Brian & his wife Angela started Maddie’s Place. Deloney intends to take Little Rock dining to new levels with fresh adaptations of comfort food with a New Orleans influence, served in a funky, informal, family-friendly environment.

Chef Kelli Marks, Sweet Love

For most kids, their hobbies included playing basketball or learning an instrument, for Kelli Marks, her favorite past time was experimenting in the kitchen. Marks learned her way around the kitchen as most Southern women do, under the tutelage of her grandmother, a woman who could pass for Paula Deen’s long lost sister. There she learned the importance of using real ingredients and true Southern staples.

With a strong interest in arts and armed with a desire to express herself, Marks turned to culinary arts. Her first foray into elaborate decorated cakes came with her grandparent’s fiftieth anniversary where she embarked upon the world of cake, fondant and royal icing, creating an edible masterpiece to feed over two hundred guests. She’s been hooked ever since, creating new recipes that temp the taste buds and are visually stunning. Notable creations include a racecar with working headlights and taillights, a 3D replica of R2D2 and a hand-stamped wedding cake.

Marks opened Sweet Love in January of 2012 with the idea that treats can both feed a sweet tooth as well as the soul. Her unlikely journey into culinary arts took her through an MBA program, giving her the business know how to manage a bakery. But the feeling in her gut, the desire to feed those around her with items that are both delicious and beautiful is something she came by honestly.

Chef Donnie Ferneau, Restaurant Twenty-One

Chef Donnie Ferneau attended culinary school in Iowa and apprenticed throughout the Midwest before heading south to Arkansas. He worked under several well known chefs in Little Rock before venturing out on his own last year.

Ferneau, well known for his meet and greet flair, is often seen mingling among the patrons. Even with a packed house, Chef Donnie is out meeting his customers and chatting with them to make sure that they are having a positive dining experience. "I revel in knowing that we meet their satisfaction and I want to see this on their faces."

When Chef Donnie is not in his kitchen, he is busy within the community. He is involved with local culinary programs and strives to help students realize their dreams. He provides cooking demonstrations and classes and competes in events statewide.