ChopnBlok

The next installment of Friends of the Blọk brings together two boundary-pushing voices in diasporic cooking: Chef Tavel Bristol-Joseph of Austin’s Canje and Top Chef finalist Chef Dawn Burrell. Known for its modern take on Caribbean cuisine—from Guyana to Jamaica to Puerto Rico—Canje joins forces with ChòpnBlọk for a multi-course dinner bridging Afro-Caribbean and West African flavors, while Burrell’s culinary approach threads the collaboration with her own language of cultural connection. Together, the chefs present a meal inspired by memory and migration. About Tavel Bristol-Joseph: Born in Georgetown, Guyana, Chef Tavel Bristol-Joseph began baking with his aunt as a child before moving to the U.S. at 17 and enrolling at the New York Restaurant School. After working in New York and Tucson, he partnered with Chef Kevin Fink to open Emmer & Rye in Austin in 2015. Today, he is a partner in Emmer & Rye Hospitality Group, which includes celebrated concepts like Hestia, Canje, and Nicosi. Known for his bold take on Caribbean cuisine, Bristol-Joseph was named one of Food & Wine’s Best New Chefs in 2020, a James Beard Award semifinalist in 2023 and 2025, and Pastry Chef of the Year by Esquire in 2024. Canje, his love letter to Caribbean food, was named one of Bon Appétit’s Best New Restaurants in America and featured in The New York Times. About Chef Dawn Burrell: Chef Dawn Burrell is a former Olympian turned chef whose global travels as a 2000 Olympian and 2001 Indoor World Champion sparked a passion for international cuisine. Inspired by the flavors she encountered, she set out to blend them with the comforting dishes of her childhood, rooted in fresh, local ingredients. After culinary school, she trained under Tom Aikens in London, worked with Monica Pope in Houston, and served as sous-chef at Uchi in Austin. As executive chef at Kulture, her bold take on global comfort food earned national acclaim and a James Beard Award semi-finalist nod in 2020. A Top Chef Season 18 finalist and Season 20 participant, she later joined the Marcus Samuelsson Group to help open Marcus Addis in Ethiopia. In 2024, she returned to the Olympics—this time as a featured chef in Paris. Today, Burrell continues to share her vision through food that connects cultures and tells a story.