Two top chefs from New Orleans cooked lunch for the Gold and Blue crews of the Ohio-class ballistic missile submarine USS Louisiana (SSBN 743), Nov. 28.

Christopher Lusk, executive chef of the Caribbean Room, and David Whitmore Jr., the chef de cuisine for Borgne Restaurant, brought in their own ingredients to cook New Orleans-inspired cuisine for the 300 crew members.

"Today we are preparing a lot of local New Orleans fair," said Lusk. "This means a lot to me, I have a six-month old son and I am going to be able to tell him about being on a submarine and cooking for the crew. It is such a huge honor because of what these Sailors do for us every single day. This is our way to say thank you."

Over 75 gallons of food, 300 dinner rolls, and 50 pounds of shrimp was provided by the chefs for the meal.

"When I see people volunteer their time and come and cook for two entire crews of almost 300 people, it's a big deal, and it means a lot to me and it means a lot to these Sailors," said Chief Culinary Specialist Carl Smith. "The chefs were pretty inspired by what these Sailors do every single day with the limited space that we have. I believe that the reassurance and respect that the Sailors received from the chefs gave them even more pride in the jobs that they do."

The executive chefs also provided hands-on guidance and training to culinary specialists from the Louisiana.

"Every day they're doing a lot of work to keep the boats up, to keep everything clean, and to keep everything perfect in a military fashion to protect the country," said Whitmore. "This is what we can do to thank them for everything that they do."

The menu consisted of smoked turkey and sausage jambalaya, shrimp ettouffee, red beans and rice, spinach madelaine, smothered okra, turtle soup, remoulade salad, and bread pudding.

"They served us an amazing meal," said Louisiana's Gold crew commanding officer Cmdr. Martin Sprague. "So on behalf of the USS Louisiana, we are grateful for the authentic and amazing cuisine that was served to us today."

Louisiana is one of eight Ohio-class Trident ballistic missile submarines stationed at Naval Base Kitsap-Bangor, providing the most survivable leg of the nation's strategic deterrent forces.

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For more news from Commander, Submarine Group 9, visit www.navy.mil/.