Kwéyòl / Creole Book Launch

Join us for a vibrant evening of flavor, culture, and celebration at this Caribbean Soiree, a special event to commemorate the release of Kwéyòl / Creole: Recipes, Stories, and Tings from a St. Lucian Chef’s Journey, the highly anticipated cookbook by renowned chef Nina Compton with award-winning food writer Osayi Endolyn.

​This experience will take you on a culinary journey across the Caribbean diaspora as Nina shares her story from her birthplace of St. Lucia, to Jamaica where her view of Caribbean cuisines broadened, to Miami where she was immersed in Afro-Latin influences, and finally New Orleans, her adopted city whose Creole cuisine brought her home in new ways.

​Each stop along the way will be brought to life with exquisite bites inspired by the dishes in Nina’s cookbook, crafted by the talented Chef Brittney “Stikxz” Williams.

​The evening will be infused with the rhythms of the Caribbean, setting the perfect backdrop to indulge in delicious food & drink, learn more about Nina’s journey, and dance the night away in true Caribbean style.

​Ticket Options:
– Standard: general admission to the event
– Standard + Book: general admission + a signed copy of Kwéyòl / Creole

​Purchase your copy in advance for a discount on your event ticket! Additional copies of the book will be available for purchase onsite.

​Thank you to our sponsors at Spiribam Spirits for supporting this celebration.

​More about the book
​James Beard Award-winning chef Nina Compton shares recipes that tell the story of her thrilling culinary journey from St. Lucia to Jamaica, Miami, and New Orleans, and celebrate the diverse African heritage that threads these cuisines together.

​Growing up in St. Lucia, a small island in the Eastern Caribbean, chef Nina Compton developed a strong sense of community through cooking and food. As she traveled and worked in restaurants abroad, she was eager to learn, improvise, and innovate by doing what transplants like herself do best: Bring the best of home with them wherever they go.

​In St. Lucia, when they say “Creole,” they don’t mean French-influenced. The St. Lucian Creole, or Kwéyol, celebrates a diverse African heritage, beautifully reflected in the 100 recipes presented here. The dishes are both transportive and irresistible, each telling a story of its multi-faceted history and influences: steamed snapper with a peppery ginger sauce, slow-cooked curried goat, green fig and saltfish, coconut-braised collard greens, Creole-stewed conch, the countless possibilities of the beloved plantain. In these pages, the weather is warm and tropical, and the vibe is easygoing, just like the places Nina’s lived. The dishes are full of flavor and the mood is chill.

​Full of stunning travel photography and anchored by Nina’s singular culinary vision, Kwéyòl / Creole celebrates the rich history of where she comes from, while forging something that feels a little new, a little hers. And now, with this book, a little yours, too.

​More about the authors
​Nina Compton is a James Beard Award-winning chef and was named one of Food & Wine’s “Best Chefs.” She is also the chef and owner of the award-winning restaurants Compère Lapin, BABs Nola, and Nina’s Creole Cottage. She was born and raised in St. Lucia and now resides in New Orleans, Louisiana.

​Osayi Endolyn is a James Beard award-winning writer, editor, and producer who creates culturally informed narrative, visual, and experiential storytelling. Her work is widely featured across media and entertainment platforms. She has co-authored the acclaimed cookbooks The Rise and Black Power Kitchen.

​More about BEM
​​​​​​BEM | books & more is a literary destination at the intersection of food and Blackness. Established by two sisters in January 2021 as an online bookstore, BEM is proud to serve as a home for readers, writers, cooks, and eaters passionate about Black cultures in all their diversity. Taking an expansive approach to the nexus of food, literature, and culture, BEM celebrates Black food by bringing works of fiction, nonfiction and poetry for readers of all ages into conversation with cookbooks and culinary studies to explore how what feeds us defines us.

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Location
Akwaaba Mansion
347 MacDonough St, Brooklyn, NY 11233, USA