MAGGIE SCALES

EXECUTIVE PASTRY LINK RESTAURANT GROUP, CHEF/PARTNER LA BOULANGERIE

Originally from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Maggie Scales pursued her Undergraduate degree at University of California, San Diego, majoring in Language Studies. After graduating, she relocated to Boston, Massachusetts to attend the Cambridge School of Culinary Arts in the Professional Pastry Program. While in Boston, Maggie worked at Chef Bob Kinkaid’s Sibling Rivalry Restaurant and the Metropolitan Club under Chef Todd Weiner and held a position as Pastry Chef at Smith & Wollensky Steakhouse. In 2009, she accepted a position at James Beard Award winner Lydia Shire’s Scampo Restaurant at the Liberty Hotel. When Chef Shire opened Towne Stove + Spirits in 2010, Maggie became its executive Pastry Chef. After relocating to New Orleans in 2011 and working for the Omni Hotels, Maggie joined Link Restaurant Group as a Pastry Chef in 2013. In summer 2014, Maggie accepted the position as Executive Pastry Chef overseeing all aspects of Link Restaurant Group’s pastry department. When Link Restaurant Group purchased La Boulangerie from its original owner in 2015, Maggie partnered up with Chefs Link and Stryjewski and is now also running the bakery.

CARLOS B. SANCHEZ

HEAD BAKER

At age 20 Carlos immigrated from El Salvador to the US in 1990. He started his culinary career as a dishwasher at Shanghai Reds at Marina Del Rey California, and later that year accepted a position as prep-cook at Air Gourmet for in-flight catering, learning the ins and outs of cooking. From 1994 to 1997 Carlos worked for Marriott Corporate Services at Northrop Grumman Headquarters in Los Angeles, constantly training and expanding his culinary knowledge. In 1997, Carlos returned to Air Gourmet to learn the art of making bread and pastries. Carlos served as an apprentice baker for Victor Benne Bakery at Gelson’s Market and became the pastry chef-baker for Air Gourmet in 2000. After moving to New Orleans in 2003, Carlos worked for the Felicity Redevelopment Project restoring historic houses in the Central City area. In 2007 Carlos accepted the position as Sous Chef of Dominique Rizzo, the original owner of La Boulangerie, managing and making artisan breads and pastries. He still holds this today, overseeing the bread program under the leadership of Chef/Owner Maggie Scales.

KELLY PACILLAS

GENERAL MANAGER

Kelly Pacillas grew up on the West Coast, moving every couple of years, living in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Portland, Seattle, and Hawaii. Kelly’s career in the hospitality industry started as a cook at a summer camp. While raising three children, Kelly worked her way through every position in the restaurant world back and front of house and eventually landed permanently in the position as a General Manager. She spent several years working for Susan Sarich as General Manager of multiple Susiecakes locations on the West Coast. After a cross country move, Kelly joined Link Restaurant Group early 2019 as General Manager of La Boulangerie. In her free time you can often find her enjoying a run by the river or listening to great jazz with her husband of 28 years.

DONALD LINK

EXECUTIVE CHEF AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER LINK RESTAURANT GROUP: HERBSAINT, COCHON, COCHON BUTCHER, CALCASIEU, PÊCHE SEAFOOD GRILL, GIANNA AND LA BOULANGERIE

Inspired by the Cajun and Southern cooking of his grandparents, Louisiana native Chef Donald Link began his professional cooking career at 15 years old. Recognized as one of New Orleans’ preeminent chefs, Chef Link has peppered the streets of the Warehouse District of New Orleans with several restaurants over the course of the past fifteen years. Herbsaint, a contemporary take on the French-American “bistro” was Link’s first restaurant. Cochon, opened with chef-partner Stephen Stryjewski, is where Link offers true Cajun and Southern cooking featuring the foods and cooking techniques he grew up preparing and eating. Cochon Butcher is a tribute to Old World butcher and charcuterie shops which also serves a bar menu, sandwiches, wine and creative cocktails. Calcasieu is Chef Link’s private event facility that takes its name from one of the parishes in the Acadiana region of southwest Louisiana. Pêche Seafood Grill serves simply prepared coastal seafood with a unique, modern approach to old world cooking methods featuring rustic dishes prepared on an open hearth over hardwood coals. Enjoy handcrafted pastries and breads at La Boulangerie Link’s neighborhood bakery and café.

Link’s flagship restaurant Herbsaint earned him a James Beard award in 2007 for Best Chef South. The same year Cochon was nominated for Best New Restaurant; Link was also nominated by the James Beard Foundation for the prestigious award of Outstanding Chef for multiple years. Pêche Seafood Grill was awarded Best New Restaurant at the 2014 James Beard Foundation Awards. Gourmet Magazine listed Herbsaint as one of the top 50 restaurants in America, and was inducted into the Nations Restaurant News Hall of Fame. Cochon was listed in The New York Times as "one of the top 3 restaurants that count” and recently named one of the 20 most important restaurants in America by Bon Appétit. For his commitment to the industry, the Louisiana Restaurant Association honored Link by naming him Restaurateur of the Year in 2012.

The James Beard Foundation also honored Link’s first cookbook-- Real Cajun: Rustic Home Cooking from Donald Link’s Louisiana (Clarkson Potter) with their top award for Best American Cookbook. Released in 2009. Real Cajun is a collection of family recipes that Link has honed and perfected while honoring the authenticity of the Cajun people. In February 2014, Link celebrated the release of his second cookbook "Down South: Bourbon, Pork, Gulf Shrimp & Second Helpings of Everything," (Clarkson-Potter), which looks beyond New Orleans and Louisiana at dishes in nearby states. In 2015, Chefs Link and Stryjewski created the Link Stryjewski Foundation to address the persistent cycle of violence and poverty, as well as the lack of quality education and job training opportunities available to young people in New Orleans. http://www.linkstryjewski.org

STEPHEN STRYJEWSKI

CHEF/PARTNER, LINK RESTAURANT GROUP: COCHON, COCHON BUTCHER, CALCASIEU, PÊCHE SEAFOOD GRILL, GIANNA AND LA BOULANGERIE

Winner of the 2011 James Beard Foundation “Best Chef South,” Stephen Stryjewski is Chef/Partner of New Orleans’ award winning restaurants Cochon, Cochon Butcher, Pêche Seafood Grill, Calcasieu a private event facility and La Boulangerie a neighborhood bakery and café, as well as Gianna, Link Restaurant Group's latest addition to the family. Stephen has been honored as “Best New Chef” by New Orleans Magazine, and as a “Chef to Watch” by The Times-Picayune. In 2007 Cochon was named a “Best New Restaurant” finalist by the James Beard Foundation, and in 2014, Pêche Seafood Grill won the James Beard Foundation award in the same category. Cochon has been recognized in the New York Times by Frank Bruni, “Coast to Coast, Restaurants that Count;” and Sam Sifton, “Dishes that Earned their Stars,” and has been consistently listed as a Top Ten New Orleans Restaurant in The Times-Picayune Dining Guide and was recently named one of the 20 most important restaurants in America by Bon Appétit.

In 2015, Stryjewski and his business partner Chef Donald Link created the Link Stryjewski Foundation to address the persistent cycle of violence and poverty, as well as the lack of quality education and job training opportunities available to young people in New Orleans. http://www.linkstryjewski.org

In 1997, Stryjewski graduated from the Culinary Institute of America and went on to work for some of the most notable chefs and restaurants in America including Michael Chiarello at TraVigne, Jamie Shannon at Commanders Palace, and Jeff Buben at Vidalia. Stryjewski grew up moving frequently as an “Army brat” and has traveled extensively in the United States and Europe. He resides in New Orleans’ Irish Channel with his wife and two daughters.