BATON ROUGE, La. (press release) – The Louisiana Office of Tourism (LOT), along with the Louisiana Seafood Promotion and Marketing Board and tourism partners around the state, will meet with tour operators, travel agents and travel journalists this week in the media markets of western Canada. Reigning King of Louisiana and American Seafood Chef Ryan Trahan will highlight promotional events in Vancouver, British Columbia, and Calgary, Alberta, with cooking demonstrations as well as serve up savory dishes made with certified Louisiana seafood.
Chef Trahan is the executive chef at Blue Dog Café in Lafayette and will share Louisiana’s seafood culinary heritage first at the Pacific Institute of Culinary Arts in Vancouver for a promotional event for invited guests in the media and tourism industry. In Calgary, Chef Trahan will introduce Louisiana dishes to travel writers and travel professionals at Cuisine et Château as well as a promotional event at the Calgary Marriott.
“Chef Ryan Trahan is considered culinary royalty in our state because he won the 2018 Louisiana Seafood Cook-Off last June in Lafayette, then two months later he was crowned King of American Seafood at the Great American Seafood Cook-Off in New Orleans,” said Lt. Gov. Billy Nungesser in a press release about the trip. “I am excited to have Chef Trahan promote our world-class cuisine using Louisiana seafood to our neighbors up north in Canada. They are really in for a treat with outstanding dishes that will Feed Your Soul.”
Chef Trahan was raised in Crowley, Louisiana, with roots firmly established in Louisiana home cooking. Ryan was named Executive Chef at Blue Dog Café in the spring of 2018 and specializes in fresh, regionally-inspired, sustainably-sourced local cuisine focused on southern hospitality and Cajun culture.
The Canadian travel market is important to Louisiana, consistently ranking as the state’s top international market and accounting for 40 percent of Louisiana’s international visitors.
Other tourism organizations from across the state will also be attending Canadian marketing mission including the Lafayette Convention & Visitors Commission, Shreveport-Bossier Convention & Tourist Bureau, Atchafalaya National Heritage Area, Jefferson Convention & Visitors Bureau and New Orleans Plantation Country.
