In 1941, Emily and Dooky Chase, Sr. opened Dooky Chase Restaurant, a sandwich shop on Orleans Avenue in New Orleans. Five years later, a young girl from Madisonville, Louisiana married Emily and Dooky's son, big band leader Edgar "Dooky" Chase, Jr. Under Leah's leadership, the simple shop grew into one of the first African American fine dining restaurants in the country – the place where Leah Chase established herself as the Queen of Creole Cuisine. Since her passing in 2019, Leah's legacy lies in the hands of her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren.
Now, that crew, which Leah always referred to as "the grands," are debuting their own TV series, produced locally by WYES-TV and airing on PBS affiliates throughout the country. For this momentous occasion, we sat down with the younger generations at the restaurant during the taping of The Dooky Chase Kitchen: Leah's Legacy. On this week's show, we hear not only those young, ambitious voices, but we've dug into our archives to bring you material that never previously aired from the late, great Leah herself.
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