Dear friends,

Creating a great dish requires all its pieces to work in concert, from the eye-catching main ingredient that stirs the appetite to the seasoning elements that build the flavor around it.

The same is true for running a restaurant itself. There may be the family name of the owners over the door or an acclaimed chef in the kitchen, but it is the combined work of everyone in the building that makes the business possible.

Behind every great restaurant meal, and the memories we make at the table, there are the contributions of many hands.

Some are part of the dining experience, from greeting us at the door to making our favorite cocktails to orchestrating the meal at the table. Regulars know them by name. Others perform their jobs behind the scenes, perhaps keeping the restaurant itself in tiptop shape, expediting the delivery of each diner’s meal or making sure the books are in order.

They’re all part of the hospitality culture we value in this community.

New Orleans culture is a passion for me, especially our unparalleled culinary culture, and for nearly three decades we have used our annual mailers to celebrate this culture, one restaurant, one recipe, and one mailer at a time, while keeping everyone up to date about our real estate successes and opportunities ahead. Through the years, we’ve focused on many aspects of New Orleans culture and the New Orleans food scene, including in-depth features on Ella Brennan, Leah Chase, and, most recently, JoAnn Clevenger. We’ve also focused on the bounty of our natural heritage in Louisiana, specific restaurants and iconic New Orleans dishes.

This year we are highlighting people in restaurants who contribute to them but don’t always get the spotlight—the unsung heroes of New Orleans hospitality.

They reflect values that we strive to uphold at Corporate Realty.

It’s about working together and devoting the right skills and resources to a shared goal. From our agents to our building engineers and our accounting and marketing staff, we are a team of more than 100 professionals working for the long-term success of our clients.

It’s a winning formula that we recognize in the restaurant world, too.

Our 2026 mailers will feature some of the unsung heroes from some of our favorite restaurants around town and also share recipes from these restaurants. We kick off our campaign with Murray Thomas, Morning Sous Chef at the legendary Galatoire’s, and the delicious Crab Yvonne

I look forward to deepening the connections we share through our community, and I’m grateful to all the personal relationships we’ve created, both through Corporate Realty and through our love of New Orleans food and culture. I hope you will enjoy our “Unsung Heroes” series. To see previous years of recipes, please be sure to visit our Recipes page.

Sincerely,

Michael J. Siegel, President
Corporate Realty Inc.

Featured image courtesy Kenny Morrison.