Chef Focus: Jason Goodenough
Tell us about your supper club!
Tell us about your supper club!
It’s kind of a progression of the cuisine I did at my restaurant. I had Carrollton Market for seven years, and with the constant menu changes, it was really an opportunity to be creative. Then I closed it and started doing catered events. A lot of catered affairs tend to be the same thing over and over because there’s a certain sweet spot of dishes I know I can execute well in someone’s home, even if their oven isn’t great.
So the supper club became an opportunity to be creative?
I like to call it more refined. Private events are great quality, but this gives me creative license to experiment in ways I wouldn’t normally. The supper clubs used to be thematic —we did ones inspired by bands, dinners at Carrollton Market, and even a “Mom” dinner featuring iterations of my mom’s dishes after she passed. But now, I feel theming is a bit limiting. This time, I just want to share dishes I’ve been experimenting with over the last year instead of boxing myself into a theme.
Will this be a one-off or part of a series?
Potentially a series. I used to do monthly dinners in different locations, kind of like little pop-ups, but the cost of building kitchens and running everything got prohibitive—sometimes $200 per person for service and rentals before I even bought food. We tried to do them in my commissary kitchen for a while which had more of an industrial chef’s table vibe, and I’ve done several collaborations with other chefs and bakers. Now it’s just about having fun.
Tell me a bit about your story as a chef. Do you have a specialty style?
Not really. My restaurant has always been locally ingredient-driven. I like to avoid overly “New Orleans-y” food since I’m not from here. I try to follow the example of cooks who came here from elsewhere —taking what’s local and applying what they know. I’ve worked for Iron Chef Morimoto, which gave me some Japanese techniques, and for one of the best French chefs in America, so I have a deep French technical background. I also worked with a South Philly Italian chef, which is where I learned a lot about handmade pastas. Really, I just love learning new things and evolving my craft. Cooking is exciting when what I imagine in my head actually tastes amazing.
Where are you from originally?
I grew up in London, England, and Manhattan, New York. I met my wife in college—she’s from Mississippi. I met her and transferred to Millsaps College, where she was a student. Then, I returned to the Northeast to go to The Culinary Institute of America while she went to medical school in Philadelphia. When she graduated, we wanted to move closer to her family in Mississippi, which is how we ended up in New Orleans. It’s been 14 years now.
Do you have a favorite restaurant in town?
Probably Peche. You can’t go wrong there. I also love Houston’s—they’re a micro-chain, but every step of their service is dialed in perfectly. Systems and processes are everything, and it’s inspiring to see them executed so well.
Is there anything you want the Common house membership base to know?
I’m really excited to cook for them and let them experience what I’m doing now. I am really proud of this menu, and think guests will respond really well to it. There’s no strict cuisine—it’s just my style: extremely flavorful. There will be a progression of dishes, starting with three shareable small plates and moving on to a couple of banger plated courses prior to dessert. . I think it’s going to be a home run.