Magic in a Shaker

Marvin J. Allen is the bar manager and bartender at the Hotel Monteleone's Carousel Bar. Voted New Orleans Magazine's Bartender of the Year in 2005, Allen has been behind the counter for more than twenty years. A member of the United States Bartenders' Guild, he is a USBG certified spirits professional. Allen's emphasis on classic ingredients and fresh tastes has earned him several honors: his Southern Comfortini won second place in the Tales of the Cocktail (c) contest in 2003, and in 2004 his Blushing Southern Belle earned honorable mention in the same competition. Allen also placed in the 2010 42 Below Vodka competition with his Peanut Butter and Jelly Martini. A recipient of the 2010 City Business Culinary Connoisseur award, Allen has been an "adopted native" of New Orleans, Louisiana, for more than twenty-five years. Ann Benoit lives, loves, photographs, writes, and most importantly eats in New Orleans. A full-time book packager with an expertise in culinary books, she zealously pursues her second career of food photography and food writing. She is a member of the American Culinary Federation, the International Association of Culinary Professionals Food Photographers and Stylists, and the James Beard Foundation. Retired assistant attorney general for the State of Louisiana and former chief of the Antitrust and Business Litigation section of the Louisiana Department of Justice, she is the retired executive director of the Plaquemines Community CARE Center and retired chief of the Family Law division of the Pro Bono Project of New Orleans. She is a graduate of Loyola University New Orleans College of Law, Southeastern Louisiana University, and Mount Carmel Academy.