Cook/Culinarian

Chase (1923-2019) was known as the "Queen of Creole Cuisine" and transformed Dooky Chase's Restaurant in New Orleans into a civil rights movement meeting place and a Black dining institution. While running one of the first upscale dining establishments for Black patrons in the segregated South, she served both civil rights leaders and local residents, making her restaurant a vital cultural and political center where leaders could meet to discuss strategy during the civil rights movement. Beyond her role in social justice, Chase was also renowned for her contributions to Creole cooking, her vast Black art collection displayed in the restaurant, and her influence on American culinary culture, inspiring the character Tiana in Disney's "The Princess and the Frog."