Melissa Cookston

She is the chef/owner of two restaurants, the author of two cookbooks, and a seven-time world American barbecue champion.

In 2011, they were able to open their first restaurant, Memphis BBQ Company, which has locations in Mississippi and Georgia.

She also opened a catering/plate lunch restaurant in 2019 called Green Tomato Catering in Horn Lake, MS. She still serves as pitmaster of Yazoo's Delta Q barbecue team.

[6] Since 2012, she has appeared on TV shows such as BBQ Pitmasters, Chopped, CBS This Morning, and The Kitchen, The American Barbecue Showdown,[7] among others.

[8] She currently lives in Hernando, Mississippi with her husband, Pete, and her daughter, Lauren.