Creole Soul

Former Pro Basketball Star Hampton Isom Opens Restaurant in Des Moines | Eater Seattle

"I learned that in late March Chef Hampton Isom opened a brick-and-mortar outpost of his three-year-old Dat Creole Soul food truck in Des Moines, bringing New Orleans–influenced Creole cooking to the community with generous helpings of fried catfish (he goes through about 15 pounds a day), gumbo, jalapeño hush puppies, fried alligator on a stick, po'boys with bread he hand-selects and flies in as a registered shipper, and newly made beignets. The small operation—still running the food truck— is staffed by his fiancée and co-owner Christine Huestis and worker Anjelica Carrasco, offers takeout and limited dine-in service, and is open Thursday–Saturday 5:00 p.m.–11:30 p.m. and Sunday 11:00 a.m.–6:00 p.m. Isom, who recreates recipes influenced by his grandmother and mother after moving north from the New Orleans projects, pairs the restaurant with charity through his nonprofit Dat Creole Soul Lagniappe (a registered 501(c)(3)), serving about 25 free meals a week, posting fliers near bus stations, and planning giveaways of food and essentials while hoping to scale to a larger community kitchen; he continues to juggle the restaurant with his work as an Alaska Airlines flight attendant." - Gabe Guarente