Jesse Roqué found success with Never Blue, her award winning, globally inspired tapas restaurant in Hendersonville, NC. Classically trained as a pastry chef at Johnson and Wales University, Roque has defined herself as a talented chef, industry leader, and mentor. She was the 2016 North Carolina Restaurant and Lodging Association Chef of the Year and has participated in Charleston Food and Wine, Highlands Food and Wine, Euphoria Wine and Food, Terra Vita Food and Drink Festival, and her new food truck was featured at the FEI World Equestrian Games in Tryon, NC. She has been featured in Restaurant Hospitality Magazine, Atlanta Journal Constitution, Southern Living Magazine, WNC Magazine,
UpScale Magazine, and Town Magazine. On her days off, Jesse mentors students at Henderson
County Career Academy. She led their ProStart Culinary Team to Nationals in 2018. Jesse lives on her small family farm with her husband and four children. She homeschools her two youngest daughters and grows and preserves food stuffs for the restaurant.