1. One thing you don’t know about me is that I’m just as at home in the woods as I am in the city.
2. I’m most proud of my wife and four boys. They made a lot of sacrifices while I was poor and working like a dog to learn my craft.
3. One of my more memorable meals was at Chez Bruno in Les Arc, Provence.
4. If there was no jumbo lump blue crab meat, I’d have no reason to live. I don’t think a war has ever been waged over crab meat, but it would be a war worth fighting.
5. My advice to a kid getting into this business is to dedicate 10 years of your life to learning with little or no regard to pay. The sacrifices you make today will pay off tomorrow.
6. My go-to drink is Pappy Van Winkle on the rocks.
7. If I were on death row, my last meal would be cracklin; cornbread; crowder peas and pot liquor; pork roast; fried okra; pan-fried sweet potatoes; and mustard greens.
8. The thing I hate most about this business is anonymous bloggers.
9. The biggest misconception customers have about restaurants is that they make money hands-over-fists.
10. If I could do it all over again, I wouldn’t change a thing.