Susan Benton, Owner | 30AEATS.com
I love food it is just that simple. No matter where I may travel, it is my mission to source out the best food and product possible. I enjoy meeting the people behind the operations. From chefs to fisherman, farmers and cheese makers to distillers- just to name a few, I am fascinated and find their work compelling and interesting. It is an incredible experience to be surrounded by people in such an industry that are so passionate and dedicated to their craft. Even more so that this work is done to feed our basic needs, yet can be transformed into magical works of artistry on a plate or in a glass.
30AEats.com began in September 2011 after the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. Passionate about the local community and Gulf Coast seafood, I decided to create a website to share with readers the people behind our food, where good food comes from, and where it can be found. It is my goal to help readers discover the flavors of our region so that they in turn will support the people that feed us good food, invest in it and themselves, and buy artisan products.
I am a freelance food and travel journalist, photographer, and the owner and editor of 30AEATS.com. I develop and test recipes professionally for famed cookbook authors, chefs, and food establishments, and I judge food related competitions. I enjoy creating and sharing new recipes and use knowledge gained from my travels and personal experiences to cultivate them. I have two children; one is at the University of Alabama, the other is attending Georgia Tech, and I am married to an Orthopaedic surgeon which comes in quite handy.
I was in a near fatal head-on collision a little over ten years ago, and the easiest way to describe the outcome is to say I broke everything but my right arm and my face, sustaining internal injuries as well. Divine intervention, my superior medical team (which yes, included my now husband), and family stood by me through more than forty surgical procedures, and are what got me to the place where I am today.
My former husband now friend, had family owned restaurant’s in New Orleans and was considered “raised in the business”. His uncles and cousins were shrimpers and fishermen, while his mother and aunts were chefs, cooks and seafood wholesalers; most still working today in the Rigolets and living along Chef Menteur. We met at LSU in Baton Rouge, both held jobs in the restaurant industry, and upon graduation he continued to pursue his culinary career, and I went on to my studied field of education, nutrition and health in Ascension Parish (Donaldsonville, La.). Fortunately Chef John Folse was nearby at Lafitte’s Landing to inspire me with his cuisine.
I spent many years in New Orleans and consider it home as it was the place that I lived the longest. My passion for good food and cultural heritage motivated my cooking while stationed there. As a child, I loved going crabbing after school while living in Charleston, and by middle school I was having a ball creating Pancit with my maid Lourdes in the Philippines, but the first significant meal that I cooked on my own was for my family when in Nola at fifteen; Jambalaya lovingly prepared in a cured black iron skillet was savored by all, and washed down with cool sweet tea.
As the daughter of a Naval Officer who was stationed all over the world, I was fortunate to learn about many new cultures and try many cuisines. I traveled the globe with the anticipation of each new place we were going to live. My Southern roots run deep, and my cooking style is Coastal Southern with a dash of flavors from my culinary experiences thrown in. In New Orleans we call that Lagniappe.
My father and generations before him hail from Alabama, and were in the Grocery business in Carbon Hill, while my mother’s family is from Georgia with some lingering in Savannah. Most migrated to Orlando to live in the “country”, rich with orange groves and agriculture, where my mother was raised. My Grandmother went on to remarry her high school sweetheart after my grandfather passed, and joined him as a peanut farmer in Statesboro, Georgia. I have wonderful childhood memories of visiting them on the farm, driving their tractor thru the peanut fields, catching catfish in the nearby pond with my sister, and sharing fresh farm-to-table meals with family.
Living on the Gulf Coast for more than 30 years- in New Orleans, Mobile, and now Florida for the last fifteen, I have built a lifetime of food knowledge, skills, and relationships with people in the industry. I am always eager to learn and absorb new ideas, and share ways to incorporate and promote our local fisherman, chefs, farmers, agriculture and restaurants into the “new” movement of the moment-savoring the relationships and legacy of our Southern culture.
Owner of 30AEATS.com
Contributor to The Daily Meal
Contributor to Emerald Coast Magazine
Contributor to Thirty-A Review
Contributor to VIE Magazine
Contributor to Beaches, Resorts and Parks Magazine
Contributor to Coastal Lifestyles Magazine
Contributor monthly to The Seaside Times
Contributor to 30A.com
Contributor to 30A EATS on Sowal.com
Association of Food Journalists
Association of Food Bloggers
Member James Beard Foundation
Member of the Southern Foodway Alliance
Member of the Cultural Arts Alliance
Sustainer-Member Junior League of Pensacola
Member of The Fishin Chix, Pensacola
