NEW ORLEANS (press release) – The New Orleans Wine & Food Experience (NOWFE) has announced that the 2025 Ella Brennan Lifetime Achievement in Hospitality Award will be presented to chef and restaurateur Dickie Brennan. The gala celebration will take place on Thursday, Jan. 9, at 7 p.m. at The Four Seasons New Orleans, with a VIP reception beginning at 6 p.m.
“Dickie Brennan was a clear choice for this year’s Ella Brennan Lifetime Achievement Award,” said David Colomb, NOWFE president in a release about the honor. “He has dedicated his life to upholding the standards of Southern hospitality and made extraordinary contributions to our culinary culture and heritage. As Ella Brennan’s nephew, he has devoted himself to continuing the legacy of hospitality that she inspires in all of us.”
Dickie Brennan is a trained chef and third-generation New Orleans restaurateur of the renowned Brennan family. He grew up in the kitchen under Chef Paul Prudhomme and helped New Orleans institution Commander’s Palace lead the American Regional Cuisines movement by introducing the world to Cajun and Creole cooking. Today, he is the owner and managing partner of Dickie Brennan & Company, along with partner Steve Pettus and sister Lauren Brennan Brower. Dickie Brennan’s restaurant group includes Palace Café, Dickie Brennan’s Steakhouse, Bourbon House and Tableau. The restaurant group also owns and operates Acorn Café (located in New Orleans’ City Park), The Commissary Kitchen + Market and Pascal’s Manale. Earlier this year, they reopened the restaurant in Audubon Park as Audubon Clubhouse by Dickie Brennan & Co. They will serve as operational partner in The Josephine on Napoleon, opening in the former Our Lady of Lourdes Church.
The Ella Brennan Award recognizes one individual each year who has made a lifetime commitment to the hospitality industry through extraordinary leadership, personal and professional accomplishments, and philanthropic contributions to the community. The Lifetime Achievement in Hospitality Award is named for restaurateur legend Ella Brennan. Her deep passion and commitment have made a significant and longstanding impact on the New Orleans hospitality industry. The award’s past recipients include Chef Paul Prudhomme, philanthropist Bill Goldring, Chef Leah Chase, restaurateurs Drago and Klara Cvitanovich, Audubon leader Ron Forman, local restaurateur Ralph Brennan, celebrity chef and philanthropist Emeril Lagasse, tourism industry icon Mark Romig, Chef Frank Brigtsen, Chef Susan Spicer, and Chef Donald Link. In 2021, NOWFE presented the Ella Brennan “Stand Up for Your Hometown Award” to recipients who exhibited unwavering love and extended an extraordinary response to support the New Orleans community during the pandemic. Those recipients included Al Copeland, Jr., Phil Moseley and Ronnie Evans, Robert Peyton and Troy Gilbert, Zeid and Marv Ammari, Erich and Jennifer Weishaupt, Devin De Wulf, Donald Link and Stephen Stryjewski, Jennifer Kelly Killian, Lauren Darnell, Melvin Rodrigue, Zach Strief, Charles Armstrong, and Isaac and Amanda Toups.
Tickets to the event are available at nowfe.com VIP tables for 10 are available for $2,500 and include access to the VIP reception from 6 – 7 p.m. and a plated meal at the Award Gala. Complimentary bottles of wine and access to multiple bars are also included. Single à la carte tickets are available for $175 per person or $1,500 per table of 10. VIP a la carte tickets may be purchased for $275 and include the VIP reception. Proceeds from the awards gala benefit the many local non-profit organizations NOWFE supports throughout the year.
