ORANGE BEACH — Chef Kyle Ogden will return to his restaurant, Odette, in Florence $2,500 richer and with an Alabama crown. Four chef teams, including two locals from Orange Beach representing …
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ORANGE BEACH — Chef Kyle Ogden will return to his restaurant, Odette, in Florence $2,500 richer and with an Alabama crown.
Four chef teams, including two locals from Orange Beach representing the Gulf Coast, cooked their hearts out for an esteemed panel of judges Monday, May 6, in front of a small crowd in Marlin Circle at The Wharf for the Alabama Seafood Cook-Off.
Each chef drew for their start order and had one hour to plate their dishes.
This year's judges included Chef Jim Smith, owner and executive chef of The Hummingbird Way in Mobile, board chairman of the Alabama Seafood Marketing Commission (ASMC) and 2011 winner of both the ASCO and GASCO; Chef Brody Olive, executive chef at Voyagers in Orange Beach's Perdido Beach Resort and 2023 ASCO and GASCO winner; Chef Arwen Rice, executive chef at Red or White in Mobile and 2024 James Beard Awards semifinalist for Best Chef-South; and Bob Carlton, veteran food writer at AL.com.
Local chefs who competed were Laurence Agnew, of Villaggio Grille at The Wharf, and Emilio Urban, of CoastAL Orange Beach. Agnew's family was there cheering him on, and Urban had a small crowd with signs of his likeness. Both put up unique dishes that highlighted Alabama Seafood.
Agnew and sous chef Terrance Johnson highlighted seafood not used often, which included croaker and something he calls "Gulf Whelks," which are more readily known as oyster drills. His dish was named "King Billy Welkomes You" and included charcoal grilled Alabama croaker "on the half shell," Gulf whelk and Admiral Oyster stew with blue crab fat crouton, fennel, celery and purple deadnettle Italian salsa verde.
Urban and sous chef Chelsea Holbrook highlighted Gulf shrimp and Spanish mackerel in their dish named "Fruits of the Gulf." It included spiced Gulf shrimp, pickled cucumbers, hibiscus fumet foam, roasted yellow pepper beurre blanc garnished with black bean crunch and Spanish mackerel floss and mackerel chicharron.
Chef Justin Fridley and sous chef Benjamin Rosen of The Depot in Auburn highlighted snapper with their dish, which included Alabama jerk snapper with charred okra and grilled watermelon salad.
While the Alabama Gulf Coast chefs and Fridley put up a good fight, it was Ogden and sous chef Taylor Bradley who took the title. Ogden is the chef de cuisine at Odette in Florence. While this was his first time competing, Odette chefs have won the competition twice. Ogden brought home the restaurant's third win with his dish titled "Spring Tide." It included a pompano filet, crab and shrimp mousse, focaccia stuffing, arugula pesto, gai lan agrodolce and Fresno chili emulsion.
They will now compete in New Orleans this summer at the Great American Seafood Cook-Off (GASCO).
