Melissa M. Martin grew up on the Louisiana coast and has lived in New Orleans for over 25 years. Her first book, Mosquito Supper Club: Cajun Recipes from a Disappearing Bayou, was named a Best New Cookbook by Bon Appétit, Food & Wine, NPR, The Splendid Table, Eater, and Epicurious, among others. In 2022, Martin was given the James Beard Award for writing the Best Book in U.S. Foodways and the IACP named the book Cookbook of the Year and Best American Cookbook. Martin has been nominated twice as Best Chef South by the Beard Foundation. She graduated from Loyola University New Orleans and honed her self-taught culinary skills to a professional level. In 2014, she opened Mosquito Supper Club, a Cajun restaurant created to celebrate the bounty of the shrimpers, oystermen, crabbers, fin and crawfish fishermen, and farmers that define bayou cuisine. She writes about food, life, and love, not always in that order. Follow her on Instagram at @mosquitosupperclub and on
