Riham’s passion for culinary arts began in middle school as she watched her mother cook in the kitchen. Inspired by those early memories, she took the initiative to start a small cake-baking business in 2022. However, her renewed interest in the broader culinary field led her to pursue a deeper understanding of cooking.
Now at NOCHI, Riham is eager to learn about the intricacies of running a kitchen and working as part of a team. After her time at NOCHI, she hopes to opening a cozy café in uptown where she can serve the traditional foods she grew up enjoying.
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Lizzie grew up in New Orleans cooking with her grandmother on Sundays for a family meal. Her passion for creating and experimenting with food has followed her all throughout her life. After graduating from high school in New Orleans, she pursued a degree in Entrepreneurship from Loyola University in New Orleans. While pursuing her bachelor’s degree, she started the tradition of “family meal” with her friends who were in town.
After NOCHI, Lizzie plans on working at a restaurant in the city or pursuing a business that provides catering and private chef services.
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Xavier’s journey into culinary started in his junior year of high school, where he would consistently skip lunch due to the options being generic, bland or just underwhelming. To make his lunch more appetizing and enjoyable, he would cook burgers, sliders and chicken sandwiches for himself until I decided to make some for friends. Word spread of his cooking and he started catering to classmates and staff as well.
In early 2022, he was given the opportunity to grow at Liberty’s Kitchen, paving roads to bigger opportunities and new challenges. Then in 2024, he decided it was time to grow and mold his passion for cooking into something bigger with the certificate program at NOCHI. It was the best decision he could’ve made.
After NOCHI, his main goals are to enter a new chapter to become a private chef, and try his skills to become a catering chef or banquet sous chef. He loves to cook for people to see their excitement and joy for well-made, hearty meals.
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With years of experience in the culinary and hospitality industries, Ayla has long been passionate about food. Even before working professionally, food and especially baked goods, played a central role in her life. Time spent in kitchens has only deepened her love for cooking and strengthened her desire to explore a wide variety of dishes and cuisines. Through this experience, she’s come to appreciate how much there is still to learn in the culinary world. What excites her most is the endless creativity that food offers: there is always something new to try, taste, and create. Looking ahead, she hopes to develop original recipes and contribute fresh ideas to the ever-evolving culinary industry.
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Tiarra’s fond interest in culinary began at an early age. Watching her grandmothers cook classic Arkansas favorites such as pinto beans, cornbread and smothered pork chops, as well as getting to help prepare these items, are among her earliest memories. Tiarra has spent the last 3.5 years in New Orleans, working in various kitchens and restaurants around the city that are centered around health food and community outreach. In January of 2025 she began attending NOCHI to follow her culinary dreams to become a private chef with a strong health focus.
After NOCHI, Tiarra plans to open a private personal chef services business as well as healthy meal planning to serve the greater New Orleans area. After going vegan, Tiarra’s vision for her career became very clear. She plans to give back to the community by showing African Americans’ that food can be not only flavorful but also healthy and lifesaving.
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Anisha grew up in New Orleans with a passion for sweets as a kid. Dealing with multiple trials and not sure what her next step should be, she turned to what she truly loved: sharing her sweet experience with everyone and spreading positive energy.
After NOCHI, her goal is simply to learn more, grow with her career and become a master pastry chef. She has big dreams, pushing herself to grow farther than she ever believed possible.
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Sara is a Port Gibson, Mississippi native residing in New Orleans. She moved to New Orleans in 2009 and earned her master’s degree in Hospitality and Tourism from the University of New Orleans. After graduating in 2010, she began her career in hotel sales and worked at various hotels throughout the city. Her love for New Orleans grew deeper as did her passion for food and people.
After having her third child last summer, Sara decided to pursue her lifelong dream of owning her own bakery. She is currently attending NOCHI with an ultimate goal of success and acclaim in the baking/pastry industry.
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Brittny’s interest in culinary arts started after high school. Brittny went to study criminal justice but began working in dietary at a nursing home in Arkansas as the start of her culinary journey. She moved back home to New Orleans, Louisiana and got her first cooking job at Bayou Burger in the French Quarter. From there she flourished; in the last 13 years she went from a line cook to a sous chef currently working for the Rizzutos Chophouse.
After NOCHI, Brittny plans on opening her own restaurant and becoming a private chef. Her mission is to show the youth and adults that it’s never too late to follow your dreams. Life will show you things you never knew you would love.
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Ayanna is a New Orleans local who has an extreme passion for food. Sweet or savory, Ayanna doesn’t discriminate. After returning to NOCHI after graduating with her certificate in Culinary Arts, Ayanna’s plan after graduation is to continue to expand her business Nola Sweets N’ Thangs by creating a food truck specializing in sweet and savory baked goods.
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Brittney, born and raised in the Bronx, New York, grew up with a love for food and its ability to bring people together. While she originally planned to become a nurse, her first Thanksgiving dinner and the show The Bear inspired her to change course and pursue her passion for cooking.
Now a student at NOCHI, Brittney is dedicated to honing her skills and dreams of becoming a private chef, crafting unforgettable culinary experiences that showcase her creativity and love for food.
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Leslie was born and raised in Baton Rouge, LA. Cooking has always been a huge part of her life. Being a daughter of a chef, she learned a thing or two very early on about the culinary industry. She’s been cooking and assisting in the kitchen since she was at least 8. After having kids of her own she knew it was time to build on what she’d learned and give her babies something to be proud of.
After NOCHI, Leslie plans on opening her own cafe and catering company.
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Alvin was born and raised in New Orleans. He has spent the last 13 years working in the barber industry as a barber/owner of Paper Kuts. He is pursuing culinary industry to support his wife in her new business venture with Sweet Anoni’s Catering and Baked Goods. He is currently working with Sweet Anoni’s and still running his barbershop.
After NOCHI he hopes to put down the clippers and pursue cooking full time and change the game in this ever-evolving food scene in New Orleans and the surrounding areas.
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Necie was born and raised in Mississippi but has resided in New Orleans for the last thirteen years. She has spent the last five years pursuing a career as the owner of Angels Amongst Us, a custom print company. In March of 2024, Necie decided she wanted to pursue her dream of becoming a professional chef and to honor her deceased daughter. So she started a catering and baked goods business, Sweet Anoni’s.
After NOCHI, Necie plans to continue to grow her business and take her show on the road. Necie also wants offer lessons in the future as a giveback to her community, not just to pursue their dreams but also to those that just want to cook for their families.
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Marya has had many different jobs from SCUBA instructor to firefighter. She has also lived in many different places from Alaska to South America. Most recently she moved from Wyoming where she had an event catering business. She moved to New Orleans to explore a new adventure in December of 2024 to attend NOCHI.
After NOCHI, Marya is excited to try out and learn many new elements of this exciting industry and New Orleans culture.
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Melanie was born and raised in Saint Petersburg, Florida. For the last nine years Melanie has worked all sorts of hospitality roles such as serving, hosting, and bartending. She always loved food and was raised in a family where food was at the center of all get-togethers. Food is a way of self-expression and when Melanie got her first job in a kitchen she never turned back. The last three years Melanie has spent traveling all around the states working seasonally in places like Utah, Alaska, Rhode Island acquainting herself with the different kinds of cuisine and way of being chefs carry themselves in different places. She now is in New Orleans for Baking & Pastry after receiving her Culinary Arts certificate in June 2024. She hopes to keep exploring and see new places. Professionally she is hoping to eventually settle back in her hometown and bring all that she has learned back with her.
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Sam's passion for cooking began at a young age, spending countless hours baking with her grandmother, affectionately known as Nana. Over the years, her love for culinary arts only deepened. While in high school, she took the next step by dual enrolling in the culinary program at Locklin Technical College of Florida. Over the years she has held multiple line cook positions in casual dining establishments. Now, Sam is ready to take her skills to the next level at NOCHI, where she can further refine her craft. Her ultimate goal is to break into the fine dining scene and, one day, open a gourmet food truck.
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Dominique is pursuing her lifelong passion for baking. Inspired by her late mother, who shared homemade treats with the less fortunate and founded a nonprofit to feed the homeless, Dominique developed a deep love for creating food that brings joy to others. After her mother’s passing in 2018, she committed to carrying on that legacy by improving her baking skills and turning her passion into a purpose. Now at NOCHI, she’s gaining the tools and confidence to grow her business, with plans to one day open a bakery in her local community.
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Jeremiah was born in Chicago Illinois and moved to Avondale, Louisiana when he was two years old. For the past thirteen years he has been working at a facility as a caregiver for mentally disabled adults where he does many things including cooking meals for his clients. He knew he wanted to take his passion for cooking to another level and learn all he could to become a great chef to one day start his own business.
After NOCHI, Jeremiah Moore wants to continue to grow in the culinary world by traveling and learning from some of the best chefs in New Orleans - and around the world.
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Jaleel was born in New Orleans but grew up and went to school in Memphis. However, he would always go back home for the summer, where he would spend most of his time under his grandmother's wing watching her cook. He would also spend some time with his other grandmother, who was a chef, and would be with her at work early mornings, sometimes helping her prepare. Jaleel went to school for HVAC, but then almost doubled back and went to school for IT. It wasn't until his best friend, Jimyria Payne, who also attended NOCHI and is a very good chef, suggested that he should try culinary school. He started touring the campus, seeing the kitchen, and meeting the chefs, and felt like a kid in a candy store. It was then that he knew he had found his true purpose in life to fulfill his dreams of becoming a chef.
Jaleel’s aspirations do not end there. With the success of his food truck, he aims to take the next step and open his own restaurant. This establishment will not only serve as a physical space to showcase his culinary talents but also act as a hub for bringing people together through the shared experience of good food and great company.
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Tyrell, a New Orleans native, discovered his passion for cuisine at the mere age of 7. His love for cooking soon turned from a hobby to a life skill he used to make a living. Tyrell’s passion is fueled by his will to provide for his son. NOCHI has provided him with a platform to elevate his skills and further his knowledge of food.
After NOCHI, Tyrell plans to own a restaurant specializing in infused food and cocktails.
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Sasha’s fond interest in cooking began in high school. In her junior year she enrolled for a culinary class which was just the beginning of her passion for culinary arts. But one Christmas she decided to challenge herself and take charge of the food. It excited her to create dishes that brought everyone together, and there she recognized how much joy cooking brought her. In that moment she realized the connection between food, family, and creativity. That Christmas was the start of her culinary journey and furthered her passion for cooking.
After NOCHI, Sasha plans to own and operate a restaurant while also showcasing her skills as a private chef. She will participate in local food events, workshops, etc for exposure and find potential clients looking for a private chef.
For more insight on Sasha’s journey you can follow her Instagram @sashdachef.
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Keyshon was born on the west side of Indianapolis and moved to New Orleans after living in Savannah and Florida, settling in the city around the age of 12. Though he quickly fell in love with New Orleans cuisine, it wasn’t until later that he discovered a passion for cooking it himself. After attending several high schools, he found his path at The NET Charter School in Central City, where he began pursuing a culinary career through Café Reconcile. After completing the program, he took time to explore other opportunities, graduating from NOCC in facility maintenance and earning a forklift license, then enrolling at NOCHI to advance his culinary training.
Currently a student at NOCHI, Keyshon is focused on sharpening his skills to become a top-tier chef. His ultimate goal is to open his own restaurant and cooking school, and to grow a social media presence that inspires food lovers around the world.
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Tia’s passion for cooking blossomed early in life, inspired by family traditions and her love for bringing people together over a good meal. Over the years, she has honed her skills through personal exploration and professional opportunities, including creating personalized menus for clients.
Tia’s culinary journey has been deeply rooted in providing comfort and nourishment. With a background in clinical research and extensive experience in menu planning and recipe development, Tia continues to make her mark by blending creativity, tradition, and care in every dish.
Her ultimate goal is to share her passion for cooking with the world, showcasing how food can be both flavorful and wholesome, while also inspiring others to create meaningful connections around the table.
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Krystle was born and raised in Baton Rouge, LA. She is proud to be a self-proclaimed New Orleanian for the past 8 years. Before moving to New Orleans she operated a small in-house bakery, along with running a small catering business for 7 years. She enhanced her understanding of food and customer service by traveling the world and experiencing some of the finest dining available. Krystle also made it a habit to educate herself more with new culinary skills by taking cooking classes wherever she traveled to learn authentic dishes.
After NOCHI, Krystle would love to find a mentor to help and guide her in the culinary industry. She plans to one day open a specialty brunch café in New Orleans.
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Hannah is a Louisiana native, experiencing southern hospitality firsthand and how important food is to building community. Hannah developed a passion for baking at a young age, helping her mom bake for holidays and various events that they hosted. As she became more confident in baking, she launched her own home bakery in her junior year of high school. In January of 2025, she began attending NOCHI to advance her baking career.
After NOCHI, Hannah plans to open her own bakery storefront. She plans on reinforcing the hospitality she learned in NOCHI to not only her customers, but also to her employees, making the environment healthy and hospitable to creativity. She plans on building her community by providing learning opportunities to those younger who wish to grow in their craft by teaching pastry decorating classes.
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Rilynn is from Huntington Beach, California, where she lived until attending college at Mississippi State. From there she decided to pursue her dreams of working on yachts. For three and a half years she worked alongside some amazing chefs while traveling through the Caribbean as a stewardess and cook. That is where Rilynn found her love and interest for culinary arts.
After she graduates from NOCHI, she sees herself going back and working on yachts but as a chef this time. She also hopes to open her own business as a private chef.
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Jamie is a New Orleans native. Her love for culinary arts began by cooking dinner with her family every Sunday after church. She would also set and as her grandmother would call it, “dress” the dining table. Cooking for others and “dressing” things became her passion!
As social media grew, Jamie started posting her cooking content. Which created a demand for her food! She then began her career in the culinary industry as a traveling caterer. Now Jamie owns her own catering company with a small team! She has now been in the catering business for 5 years. Serving Louisiana, Florida, Georgia, and Texas!
Jamie came to NOCHI to learn more about the culinary industry and to be a part of a culinary community. After NOCHI, she plans to continue to grow her catering company and to create new ventures within the food industry.
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Jean grew up in New York but spent his summers in France with his grandparents, where a different world of food, especially bakeries, left a permanent impression on him. Jean continued to hold a love for gastronomy and, after five years in the Marine Corps, he decided to pursue the art of baking and pastry and attended the Institute of Culinary Education in New York. After completing school and working in unique and famous kitchens, Jean's desire to become more well-rounded as a chef led him to enroll in the Culinary Arts Certificate Program at NOCHI.
Jean currently works as a candymaker at Leah's Pralines in the French Quarter, making fresh confections daily such as pralines, brittles, and fudge. After graduation, Jean hopes to continue working in kitchens where he can further refine his skills.
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