Ciao! Amico!

   Hello Friend!

Get to know us...

We've shared about pasta, we've chatted over wine, now we want to give you a chance to get to know a little about who we are. The crew behind the scenes, the chef's in the kitchen and the faces that greet you at the door. We've been rocking LPK in the French Quarter for the past 23 years. Each day that passes we become more grateful for those who make this place tock, make us who we are and keep us running (and great at what we do). Several of our employees (more like family) have been with us for over 20 years! We've grown together, learned together and perfected this little thing we call "pizza-making" together.

A wise man once said, "Have your staff work with you, not for you, and they'll stay with you forever". Oh wait, that wise man was our very own, James Ritchie, owner of the Louisiana Pizza Kitchen. You can find Jim (as friends and family call him) working around the restaurant almost 7 days a week. There isn't one role here that he hasn't filled at one point or another over his 23 year career as owner of LPK. He works and lives daily by his motto above and creates an active-owner presence that ensures his staff is meeting his high expectations yet still having fun!


Many of our employees have been with us longer than Justin Beiber's been alive (Oh yea.. we went there) and have been long-time friends of our owner Jim. Well without further ado, we'd like to introduce you to a few of our awesome friends:

Here's our bossman, Jim, holding one of his favorite pizzas!

On Pizza: Chef Steven Reddick also known as  Chef Turtle or Bobo to locals, Chef Steven Reddick throws in an exciting Rastafarian twist to his culinary concoctions.  Reddick – born and raised in Treme of New Orleans – is a self-taught chef, artist and whole-food mastermind who was introduced to cooking (and its powerful role food in his life) at a ripe, young age by cooking alongside his Grandmother and Auntie.  He joined us at LPK in 1993, and for the past 20 years he has been creating dishes that keep locals coming back for more and placing Louisiana Pizza Kitchen on the map as a tourist destination.

Chef Steven Reddick preparing mouth-watering pizzas for our guests.

On Pasta & Salad: Chefs Michael & Nanda Menge are LPK's favorite cooking couple. Chef Michael is a local native of New Orleans and Nanda has venutred from Australia to grace us with her culinary excellence. Chef Michael Menge has a long and rich creole-cuisine history and has been friends with owner Jim Ritchie for almost 30 years. He has apprenticed with Chef Paul Prudhomme at K-Pauls in New Orleans and Chef Julian Serrano of Masa's in San Francisco, CA. Equally impressive are the credentials of Michael's wife Chef Nanda Menge. Chef Nanda is greatly skilled in French and International cuisine along with being an excellent pastry chef! She has studied Asian, Greek and Italian cuisine throughout Europe and Australia. Stop by LPK almost any night of the week to witness this delectable duo whipping up Creole-Italian perfection. 

Chef Mike and Nanda posing for a quick picture

On the floor & at the door:
 Our servers are awesome. That's all there is to say. All of our staff is knowledgeable of our wines and dishes and eager to ensure you have the best experience at LPK possible. 

A few of our waiters having fun after a wine tasting

Although we haven't mentioned everyone today, all of our staff members are considered to be a part of our LPK family. Be sure to subscribe to our blog so you can receive updates and meet all of our staff in upcoming posts!

 

Written by Sasha Bledsoe