If you want to find good food in an unfamiliar city, one smart approach is to follow in Anthony Bourdain’s footsteps. In Miami, they might lead you to a local Haitian chain called Chef Creole Seasoned Kitchen, one of Bourdain’s favorite hidden gems around the country.
Bourdain visited on a 2005 episode of his spirited Travel Channel series, “No Reservations,” where he visited Miami’s Little Haiti neighborhood. He met the restaurant’s eponymous Chef Creole (real name Wilkinson Ken Sejour) during a passionate game of dominoes. He then stopped by the restaurant’s open-air 54th Street location with its outdoor grill at the south end of Little Haiti to tuck into a meal of conch, a shellfish popular in Caribbean food, alongside grilled fish. Bourdain goes on to dub Sejour’s food, “another example of food being the best expression of a place and a personality,” noting there’s no shortage of personality to go around here.
How to eat like Anthony Bourdain at Chef Creole
Ken Sejour gave Anthony Bourdain a crash course on what to put in Creole seasoning for fresh seafood, which is used to season conch. Super spicy Scotch bonnet peppers are first on the list. Sejour didn’t spill about the other ingredients, but some staples in Creole seasoning include paprika, onion, garlic, and herbs like oregano and thyme. Bourdain ate the conch stew with sweet, green plantains; he also sampled fresh-grilled snapper, which was also spiced up with Scotch bonnets.
Bourdain is hardly the first person to enjoy Chef Creole’s food. Sejour, who was born in the Bahamas to Haitian parents and raised in Miami, opened the first Chef Creole restaurant on 77th Street in Little Haiti in 1992, and it became a Miami favorite. He’s also cooked for other big names, from the Obamas to Pitbull. That said, the so-called “Bourdain effect” likely helped it draw in customers too — it now numbers seven locations around the Miami area, including at the city’s airport and Hard Rock Stadium.
What else to order at Chef Creole
Given Anthony Bourdain visited Chef Creole some 20 years ago, the restaurant has inevitably evolved a bit. The grilled snapper isn’t specifically listed on the standard menu, and it’s unclear what type of fish filet is offered. However, in 2025, one Yelp reviewer mentioned receiving the biggest snapper they’ve ever ordered. The conch stew is still available and there are plenty of other options to try if you decide to stop by. The award-winning conch fritters are likely a good bet. Otherwise, the seafood is frequently recommended by patrons, with options including steamed, fried, and stewed…