SoLa's Lipe competing for Great American Seafood crown

OXFORD – SoLa chef and owner Erika Lipe will head to Louisiana this weekend to compete for the Great American Seafood title against 12 other chefs. Lipe earned her way to the competition after being crowned the inaugural Queen of Mississippi Seafood in May at the Mississippi Seafood Cook-off in Gulfport.

Lipe's win marked the second time in three years a chef from Northeast Mississippi has won the competition. Cooper Miller, the chef and owner of Forklift, won the King of Mississippi Seafood in 2022.

Lipe, who opened SoLa in 2014, won with a crispy-skinned snapper topped with sweet potato hot sauce chili crab, served on top of fried green tomatoes, red cabbage crudo and tarragon buttermilk dressing.

For the cook-off on Saturday, Lipe will be unveiling a new dish.

The winner Saturday will be crowned the King or Queen of the Great American Seafood Cook-Off. Each chef will showcase their skills by creating mouthwatering dishes featuring the finest seafood from Louisiana or their home states.

The event will be held from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., and the cooking will begin at 11:30 a.m.

The event will be livestreamed from the Facebook page of Louisiana Lt. Gov. Billy Nungesser on Saturday.