Out to Lunch

The New Orleans business boom is not a coincidence, it's a campaign. NOLAbound successfully recruited young entrepreneurs to New Orleans.

Meet two of them on this week's Out to Lunch: Chris Boyd, founder of mobile app building company Apptitude, and Marianne Rodriguez, founder of fashion illustration studio MarketteNOLA.

Whole Foods Market was born in New Orleans and the big boss is still here.

Chairman of the Board of Whole Foods Market, John Elstrott, tells the fascinating tale of the birth of the nationwide health food giant and the equally fascinating tale of what's ahead. Joining John for lunch is Michael Hecht, the CEO of GNO Inc. and one of the principal architects of New Orleans' sensational business resurgence. This is an all-star show!

On this week's Out to Lunch, digi-rocker Brent McCrossen and jewelry icon Mignon Faget discuss Mignon’s controversial Stop The Violence gun pin, and Brent’s part in the digital music revolution with his company Audiosocket.

Jazz Fest — our annual overdose of music and food — is synonymous with New Orleans. Smoothie King — a healthy juice and food alternative — is the antithesis of the city. Both businesses were NOLA-born in the 1970's and are now international brands.

On this edition of Out to Lunch Peter Ricchiuti dines with Smoothie King's Tom O'Keefe and the Jazz & Heritage Foundation's Scott Aiges.

A beaver with Cajun accent makes a fashion statement this week on Out to Lunch! Cree McCree takes the nutria, the rodent that is eating the Louisiana wetlands, and turns the nasty-looking pests into fab-looking fur fashion.

Cree talks to Peter Ricchiuti about feeling good about wearing fur again in her Righteous Fur.

The World Trade Center reaches out and Amedisys brings it home on this week’s Out to Lunch with Peter Ricchiuti.

Dominik Knoll's World Trade Center presides over $60 billion worth of trade annually through New Orleans. Bill Borne's Baton Rouge based Amedisys is one of the biggest players in US healthcare. Dominik and Bill paint a fascinating portrait of New Orleans and Louisiana in the big picture, present and future.

New Orleans coffee and New Orleans ice cream — they're not just for New Orleanians any more, and you can hear why on this episode of Out to Lunch with Peter Ricchiuti.

Adrian Simpson from New Orleans Ice Cream and Danielle Boyce Batten from Cool Brew Coffee are making an allied assault on the nation.

Out to Lunch is on board this week with the Idea Village's fifth annual entrepreneur showcase — Idea Village's biggest NOLAbiz party yet, with 1,000+ entrepreneurs.

We're joined by hosts Tim Williamson, Kevin Wilkins and Robbie Vitrano, inNOLAvation founder Damon Burns, Creative Alliance's Jeanne Nathan, and Webster Pierce Jr., whose award winning invention, Wave Robber, is going to save the Louisiana coast.

If you don't have a buyer, you don't have a business, and today on Out to Lunch Peter Ricchiuti gets to the heart and art of the sale.