For centuries, France's (and sometimes Germany's) Alsace region has been renowned for its fine food. The carefully tended geese, pigs, and vines, as well as the cross-fertilization of German and French cuisine, translates into some great cooking and, for our purposes, some mighty fine eating. In this country, we've got a few of our own extraordinary regional cuisines. Tops on the list would have to be Bayou cooking. While both share the same French ancestry, they're also strongly influenced by other cultures. A closer look reveals that the two regions even share an affinity for some of the same foodstuffs, particularly pork, boudin, and crayfish. This resemblance probably clicked almost immediately for Renè Bajeux, who was born and raised in Alsace and now runs the kitchen at The Grill Room, a premier dining destination in New Orleans.

Bajeux got his first kitchen job in Alsace when he was just 13. After earning a culinary diploma, Bajeux enlisted in the French navy as a cook in 1974. When his term of service ended, he joined a Montreal catering company, then landed his first American gig as sous-chef at a French restaurant in Chicago called La Bohëme. Two years later, Bajeux signed on with famed Chicago restaurateur Richard Melman, who put him to work running the kitchens of Un Grand Cafè and La Forít. Before leaving the Windy City, Bajeux also ran the show at Bistro 110. When the Four Seasons Maui came calling, it was Hawaii or bust. Two years later it was on to the exclusive Four Seasons Beverly Hills. During his stint in Los Angeles, Bajeux was named California's Chef of the Year, beating out more than 700 other contenders. Bajeux has also been honored with perhaps one of the most prestigious awards a French chef can receive-he was elected by his peers as a Meilleur Ouvrier de France.

Patrons at the Grill Room probably care very little about medals, awards, Gourmet's yearly Top Table mention, the Five Diamonds from AAA, or Mobil's highest rating, all of which line Bajeux's office shelves. In New Orleans, it's all about the food: the Pontchatoula strawberries, the crawfish Ètouffèe, steamy gumbos, sausages, oysters, bread pudding-those are the real prizes. And they're blue ribbon, too.