This Shreveport favorite is competing in Carla Hall's national Favorite Chef competition

Meredith G. White, Shreveport Times
·1 min read

Shreveport-Bossier culinarian and foodservice entrepreneur Cindy Gleason Johnson has been recognized by the John Beard Foundation as a quarterfinalist in celebrity chef Carla Hall's national Favorite Chef competition.

Johnson is the founder and CEO of the catering operation Southern Faire and has repeatedly achieved winning and finalist status in regional competitions including the Louisiana Food Prize, Southern University's Gentleman's Cooking Classic and Great Raft Cupcake Competition.

Since June, Johnson has been steadily gaining in the Favorite Chef competition and is still working to reach the quarter-final round, which represents the top one percent of all chefs in the competition. Winners are based on numbers of votes cast by the public.

Voters can send in votes for free every day until Thursday, August 3 at 7 p.m. on the Favorite Chef website. There are also tax deductible "champion votes" that can be purchased at any time to boost the votes for your favorite chef while benefitting the James Beard Foundation, a nonprofit that aims to create a more equitable and sustainable future in the restaurant industry.

"The community has really been rallying around me," said Johnson. "Including support from friends and family and even people I don't know around the country."

The competition requires popular votes to push competitors through to the next round. Johnson will need to receive the top number of votes in her quarter finalist group to get her to the semifinals and then the finals. The finalists are competing for a feature in Taste of Home Magazine and a $25,000 grand prize along with a one-of-a-kind cooking experience with the renowned Chef Carla Hall.

Meredith G. White is the arts and culture reporter for the Shreveport Times. You can find her on Facebook as Meredith G. White, on Instagram and Twitter as @meredithgwhite, and email her at mgwhite@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Shreveport Times: A Shreveport chef has been recognized by the James Beard Foundation