Culture & Flavor

Kaitlin Guerin | Lagniappe Bakehouse

On this episode of Culture & Flavor, Zella talks with Kaitlin Guerin, a New Orleans-based Pastry Chef and Baker with an artistic dance background and an affinity for creativity and science. After attending the pastry program at The Culinary Institute of America and working in Michelin-star kitchens in Denmark and California, Guerin returned home to New Orleans just before the pandemic to ground herself and be closer to family.     She began her pastry pop-up, Lagniappe Baking, during the pandemic, selling exquisite yet nostalgic pastry boxes that celebrate and reconnect the Black foodways of the South through local, seasonal ingredients. This concept has followed her through the opening of Lagniappe Bakehouse, the Central City bakery and cafe that she and her life and business partner, Lino Asana, opening in September 2024. Lagniappe is a term used in Louisiana to mean “a little something extra.”     Guerin was named one of Louisiana Cookin’ magazine’s “Chefs to Watch” in 2021, won the 2022 StarChefs Rising Stars Pastry Chef award, and is a member of Les Dames d'Escoffier New Orleans chapter. She is a 2025 James Beard Award nominee for Emerging Chef.     Since opening, the Bakehouse has received Eater New Orleans’ 2024 “Best New Bakery” award, was featured in Vogue and CondéNast Traveler, and was listed in New York Times’ 2024 “Best Bakeries Across the US Right Now.” See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy [https://art19.com/privacy] and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info [https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info].

Givonna Joseph

On this episode of Culture & Flavor, Zella talks with Givonna Joseph, Founder and Director of Opera Creole. Ms. Joseph is committed to the culture of New Orleans, the city of her birth. This is most evident in her research on 19th-century classical music of New Orleans's Free People of Color. As Founder and Artistic Director of the award-winning OperaCréole [http://www.operacreole.com/],     Ms. Joseph’s research has recently been featured on CBS Saturday Morning [https://www.cbs.com/shows/video/Sr7_9nYlO64ZTvEuUKu1pLGK8ugNfMDo/],  NBC Nightly News, and NPR, in The New York Times and The Washington Post, and in magazines such as The New Yorker, 64 Parishes, and Atlas Obscura. She has received awards such as "Who's Who in America "2024, "Leadership in The Arts" from Washington, D.C.-based Opera Lafayette, and was an Honorary Culture Bearer in The Krewe of Muses  [https://kreweofmuses.org/muses-honors-cultural-bearers/]parade.  See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy [https://art19.com/privacy] and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info [https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info].

DJ Soul Sister

On this episode of Culture & Flavor, Zella talks with DJ Soul Sister @djsoulsister an internationally-known, veteran DJ artist, whose broadcast programs and live performances feature her personal collection of thousands of vinyl records, which earned her a spot in the book Dust & Grooves: Adventures in Record Collecting. A native of #NewOrleans, Soul Sister has hosted her Soul Power show on WWOZ FM New Orleans for 30 years (as of 2025), and has hosted internationally-aired radio programs on Sonos Radio and Worldwide FM, among others. She has been a crate digger and vinyl collector ever since she was six years old. Soul Sister has opened for many of her favorite artists like George Clinton and Parliament-Funkadelic, The Roots, Bootsy Collins, Maceo Parker, DaM-FunK, Average White Band, George Duke, Teena Marie, Doug E. Fresh, ConFunkShun, the funky Meters, Dumpstaphunk, Chuck Brown & the Soul Searchers, Soul Rebels, Lettuce, Tower of Power, and more; and has also performed alongside DJ artist/producers such as Questlove, DJ Jazzy Jeff, Mannie Fresh, KON, Maseo (De La Soul), Low Down Loretta Brown (Erykah Badu), Rich Medina, Biz Markie, and others. Available on all platforms! @heritage_radio See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy [https://art19.com/privacy] and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info [https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info].

Chef Nando Chang | It’s Bigger Than Hip Hop

On this episode of Culture & Flavor, Zella talks with Nando Chang, a Peruvian-born chef and restaurateur behind behind Michelin-starred Itamae AO in Miami. A 2025 James Beard Foundation Award winner for “Best Chef: South,” he has achieved national recognition for both introducing and redefining Nikkei (Peruvian-Japanese) cuisine in Miami. Born in Chiclayo, Peru, and raised by his grandparents, Nando immigrated to the United States at age 12 with his younger sister Valerie to join their father, Fernando “Papa” Chang, in pursuit of the American Dream. In 2023, he and Val made history as the first siblings to be inducted together into Food & Wine’s coveted “Best New Chefs” class. Itamae AO, which opened in May 2024, was named to Esquire’s “Best New Restaurants” and received its first Michelin star in April 2025. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy [https://art19.com/privacy] and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info [https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info].

Setsong Tea Crafters | South Africa

On this episode of Culture & Flavor, Zella talks with Retang Phaahla and her mother, Nondumiso, co-founders of Setšong Tea Crafters, an Award Winning Agri-business and vehicle for development of natural indigenous flora found in the natural landscapes of South Africa, more prominently within the rural areas of Limpopo. The enterprise stimulates the economy in a collaboration with rural cooperatives from Limpopo developed by a community development organization; Siyaphila Youth Support Services. Setšong Tea Crafters aims to provide a voice to these traditional knowledge holders and preserve this knowledge for future generations. Through Tea product manufacturing and commercialisation of South Africa's indigenous resources which stem from traditional knowledge, Setšong Tea Crafters aims to develop the rural economy and create jobs within the rural areas of South Africa. Setšong Tea Crafters has already created 20 jobs in rural Sekhukhune, Limpopo. The unique indigenous tea plants identified by Setšong Tea Crafters, traditionally known as Tepane Tea and Diya Tea amongst others, have proved to stand a chance at competing with existing global tea varieties with them offering unique and enjoyable taste profiles and superior health benefits. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.