Chef John Folse Culinary Institute to host international chefs for 30th Anniversary events

Nicholls State University’s Chef John Folse Culinary Institute is set to host a slate of events for its “Celebrating our Chefs” week and celebrate its 30th anniversary as the first four-year culinary program in the United States. The Institute is pleased to announce that Michelin-starred Chef Davy Tissot and Chef Maxime Moïse will be a part of an unforgettable week of culinary events.

The events will be as follows:

Silent Auction: Friday, Nov. 8 – Wednesday, Nov. 20 at 10 p.m.
Virtually available worldwide and will culminate at the Celebrating our Chefs dinner
Includes several international, unique culinary experiences for purchase
You do not have to attend the dinner to participate in the auction.

CJFCI Open House: Tuesday, Nov. 19, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. & Wednesday, Nov. 20, 10 a.m. – 12 p.m.
Students, faculty, alumni, media and the community are invited to tour the Institute and watch Chef Tissot and Chef Moïse in action, prepping for Wednesday’s sold out dinner.

Celebrating Our Chefs Dinner & Silent Auction: Wednesday, Nov. 20, 6 p.m.
A 170-seat sold-out dinner, featuring one-of-a-kind, international cuisine from Bocuse alumni chefs, visiting chefs and current students at CJFCI.  Silent auction items will be available for purchase.  Funds raised will support Nicholls students attending the Institut LYFE in Lyon, France, and enhance the Institute’s operations.

Chef Lecture Day: Chef Davy Tissot “Seeking Excellence”: Thursday, Nov. 21, sessions available at 10 & 11 a.m.
Students, faculty, alumni, media and the community are invited to attend an engaging presentation about Chef Davy Tissot’s journey, Bocuse d’Or competition and his constant search for excellence at the Bollinger Sisters’ Suite in Nicholls’ Student Union.

Visiting Chef Demo: Bayou Shrimp Quenelles: Thursday, Nov. 21, 1 – 3 p.m. at CJFCI. Students, faculty, alumni, media and the community are invited to a live cooking demonstration of Chef Davy Tissot’s signature dish.

Bayou d’Or Student Cooking Competition: Friday, Nov. 22, 9 a.m. – 1 p.m. at CJCFI Students, faculty, alumni, media and the community are invited to join Chef Jana Billiot and her seafood class for a student competition featuring five proteins from Louisiana’s freshwaters and guest judges.

Chef Davy Tissot enrolled at the hotel school in Venissieux, France, at the age of 13, where his job led him to meet Meilleurs Ouvriers de France Jean-Paul Hévin and Paul Bocuse, who inspired Tissot’s professional passion. Tissot is a Michelin-starred chef trained among the best of the best: Paul Bocuse, Régis Marcon, Jacques Maximin, Roger Jaloux and more.

In 2004, Tissot was named the Meilleurs Ouvriers de France in cuisine gastronomy. MOF is a highly prestigious award given every four years to France’s best craftsperson, signifying work approaching perfection. The competition features over 200 professions including culinary arts, glassmaking, textiles and more.

From 2004 to 2015, Tissot was the chef of Les Terrasses de Lyon, the Michelin-starred restaurant of La Villa Florentine. Since 2016, he has been the chef of the gastronomic restaurant Saisons at the Institut Paul Bocuse in Écully. It’s the first restaurant in France to receive a Michelin star for its training program and commitment to passing on culinary knowledge.

Tissot was the first MOF to compete in and win the Bocuse d’Or Gold world chef championship in 2021, the highest honor in the world of modern cooking. Tissot brought 24 chefs together from all over the world, among the most promising of their generation, and had them create dishes in 5 hours and 35 minutes in front of an audience and a jury composed of the most illustrious chefs in the world. Recently, Tissot was appointed the International President of Bocuse d’Or.

Accompanying Chef Tissot will be Chef Maxime Moïse. Moïse joined the Institut LYFE, previously known as Institut Paul Bocuse, 12 years ago as an undergraduate in the culinary arts program and then as a graduate student in the culinary leadership and innovation program. Today, he is the International Strategic Partnerships Manager of the Alliance Hospitality Network. This global network comprises 27 partners in 22 countries among the world’s top hospitality schools, working together to promote each region’s culture, hospitality education and innovation in hospitality management, food service and culinary arts.

“For the first time, the Institute will host chefs of this caliber, offering students an unparalleled educational experience. I am honored to be a part of this 30th anniversary. As an alumna, faculty and now the first female leader of the Institute, I am excited to help shape the next 30 years of culinary innovators,” said CJFCI Department Head Amelie Zeringue.

Since 2005, Chef John Folse Culinary Institute has sent 62 students to the summer training course in Lyon. Graduates of both CJFCI and the Alliance programs are now working at prestigious operations across the country and internationally including Commander’s Palace and Tana in Louisiana, Eunice in Houston, Texas, Borroco in Montreal, Canada, and The Ritz Carlton in Naples, Florida.

To learn more about Chef John Folse Culinary Institute, visit www.nicholls.edu/culinary.