Kelly Jacques co-owns Ayu Bakehouse, a beloved modern bakery in New Orleans, with her friend and longtime colleague Samantha Weiss. As chef, Kelly has led the bakery to critical acclaim for its creative interpretation of flavors—from Kelly’s Southeast Asian heritage and Samantha’s New York upbringing to their adoptive hometown of New Orleans—through the lens of pastry. Together with Samantha, she has parlayed her passion for mentorship into programs like Ayu Schoolhouse, a paid employee benefit that teaches entrepreneurial and practical skills.
Within its first year, Ayu was featured in Southern Living’s “40 Best Restaurants in New Orleans”; in 2024, Bon Appétitnamed it one of the country’s most exciting bakeries, and one year later, Kelly was named one of Food & Wine’s Best New Chefs. The bakery has also earned praise in Bloomberg and The Infatuation, and its king cake was voted best in New Orleans by NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune readers.
Kelly grew up in Annapolis, MD, and moved to New Orleans in 2006 for Tulane University. After graduating, she worked as a pastry cook at Emeril’s NOLA while launching The Bikery, a bike-delivered baking pop-up. In 2012, she moved to New York City to attend the International Culinary Center, where she met Samantha. Kelly joined Breads Bakery’s opening team in 2013, climbing from bread baker to COO during her nine-year tenure. She returned to New Orleans in early 2020; Samantha followed, and in June 2022, Ayu Bakehouse opened.
When she's not at the bakery, Kelly enjoys making ceramics and spending time in New Orleans’ Bywater with her husband Jake, their baby daughter Josie, and their dogs Boogers and ChiChi.
