Reviewed by: Pat Byington
Meet the new “King of American Seafood” from Orange Beach
One Executive Chef is showing the whole nation that Alabama’s seafood scene is top-notch. Chef Brody Olive from Voyager’s at Perdido Beach Resort just took home the top prize at the 2023 Annual Great American Seafood Cook-Off, making him the new “King of American Seafood.”
Brody Olive, 2023 Annual Great American Seafood Cook-Off winner
After winning the Alabama Seafood Cook-Off in June, Chef Brody Olive from Orange Beach set his sights on a national title.
The 2023 Annual Great American Seafood Cook-Off was held on Saturday, August 5 in New Orleans. Chef Olive prepared a signature dish that he and his sous chef, Luis Silvestre, crafted for the Alabama Seafood Cook-Off. According to Outdoor Alabama, the dish entitled “Fishing on the Rocks, the Jetties at Perdido Pass” included:
- Gafftop catfish smoked over scrub oak coal
- Flash-fried mole crabs
- Gulf shrimp horseradish cream
- Pickled purslane
- Smoked paprika coral tuile
The dish blew the judges away, and Chef Olive took the crown as the new “King of American Seafood.”
Chef Olive brought the title back to Alabama after over 10 years. In fact, there has only been one other Alabama winner in competition history. Chef Jim Smith (founder and executive chef at Mobile’s oyster bar called The Hummingbird Way) won in 2011, so it’s about time the crown returned to Alabama.
About Chef Brody Olive
Chef Brody Olive has been executive chef of Voyagers at Perdido Beach Resort in Orange Beach, Alabama, since 2016. His career started long before that, though. Here’s what the chef has accomplished so far:
- Attended Johnson & Wales University
- Sous Chef at Ocean Restaurant, Birmingham, Alabama
- Executive Chef and General Manager, Villaggio Grille, Orange Beach, Alabama
- Executive Chef and General Manager, Elli Bistro Zen Restaurant, Orange Beach, Alabama
- Executive Chef, The Beach Club, Gulf Shores, Alabama
Chef Olive has won several awards before becoming the “King of American Seafood,” including Southern Breeze Gulf Coast Cook Off champion (2008), multiple Wine Spectator Awards (2009, 2010, 2011) and many more.
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