He bought this lovely ice cream machine he put a walk-in freezer out back because I was. “You know, my life is good gave me a creative freedom that maybe most places wouldn’t give me. (Yes, it’s a tough job working for TLV.) Photograph by Newt Rayburn. He has a lot of work space at the Main Event kitchen, which is equipped with just about everything he could ever need.Ī dessert sampler that Chef Dwayne created for The Local Voice photo shoot includes a fudge brownie with pistachios, bananas foster ice cream, strawberries, dark chocolate ganache, a macaron, and candied pistachio crumble. My staff has grown by one person, and he still expects that same standard and dedication.”Įven amidst the full responsibilities he has taken on, Dwayne isn’t complaining at all. “I started at City Grocery, then John ‘let’s toss in Snackbar’ … and before you knew it there was Lamar Lounge, Bouré, the catering, anything sweet that happens. “Mainly because he expects a lot, which is not a bad thing,” Dwayne said. Working for John Currence is challenging. Harnessing his picky and meticulous nature, he attended the New England Culinary Institute, followed by internships in Florida and finally, Las Vegas, where he was working when he landed his current position as Corporate Executive Pastry Chef in June of 2010. “Then, after I made my first croissant dough,” he said, “that was it, I just knew. I remember growing up with my mother and my grandmother baking pound cakes and sweet potato pies,” he said, “and those types of things were really what I enjoyed the most.” When Dwayne decided to go to culinary school, naturally he gravitated towards the baking and pastry program. When it comes to baking, though, it’s another story.

No wild game or seafood (other than fried catfish or redfish), he sticks to the basics with savory food. Squeamish around the slaughter of wild game common in his family’s traditions, Dwayne admits that he is a picky eater. Growing up on the Gulf of Mexico way down in Boothville, Louisiana (southeast of New Orleans in Plaquemines Parish), Dwayne’s family did a lot of home cooking. “My motto is: I’m not responsible for girlish figures or sugar diabetes.” Photograph by Newt Rayburn.

Cutthroat kitchen perfect game