Juneau chef Lionel Uddipa of Salt was crowned king at the 14th annual Great American Seafood Cook-Off in New Orleans.
His winning dish was smoked Alaskan king crab with risotto prepared in fermented black cod fish sauce. The food was garnished by local sea asparagus and a blueberry branch foraged by Uddipa and sous chef Jacob Pickard before leaving Juneau.
In 2015 Juneau chef Beau Schooler and sous chef Travis Hotch of the Rookery Cafe took home the award for their nose-to-tail sockeye salmon dish.