Said to be “to the skillet what Louis Armstrong was to the trumpet,” New Orleans chef Nathaniel Burton was born in McComb, Miss., in 1914.
Burton “was revered as probably the most accomplished chef in the city at the time and for training so many other chefs,” a 2014 Country Roads article states.
His career began in 1939 when he was a busboy and dishwasher at the old Hotel New Orleans. He became the chef at Hotel Pontchartrain’s Caribbean Room, working there for 20 years. He also was the executive chef at Broussard’s Restaurant in the French Quarter.
According to a 2021 Tennessean article, Burton was a “dominating force” in the kitchen. He was “always willing to teach but refusing to let anyone take notes as he cooked,” the article states. He “was one of the rare chefs, Black, white or European, whose name was known to New Orleans diners.”
Burton co-wrote the 1978 book, “Creole Feast: 15 Master Chefs of New Orleans Reveal Their Secrets,” with civil rights activist Rudy Lombard. According to its back cover, the book “brought together the stories and knowledge of New Orleans top chefs. These masters of modern Creole cuisine share the recipes, tips and tricks from the kitchens of New Orleans’ most famous restaurants, including Dooky Chase, Commander’s Palace, Broussard’s and Galatoire’s.”
In the introduction, Lombard added that “Creole Feast” celebrated chefs who worked in “anonymity and frequently in a hostile environment.”
Filmmaker Lino Asana was intrigued. “The book didn’t necessarily go too deeply into the food. It was mostly about the chefs,” Asana told food historian Lolis Eric Ellie for a 2021 “Bitter Southerner” article. “I figured the chefs would make a good documentary, and through that, I could learn about my connection with the food and the culture.”
Burton died in 1986.
For more tales from New Orleans history, visit the Back in the Day archives.