On this week’s Louisiana Eats!, we examine the lives of five different individuals who have taken long, adventurous journeys, both personally and physically, to reach maturity and a clear sense of purpose.

We begin with a conversation with Zdenek Kastanek, a self-styled “spirits evangelist” for Proof & Company, an elite distribution business that is helping to shape the pre-eminent cocktail bars of Singapore. Zdenek explains how his odyssey to become a master of cocktails took him from a small town in the Czech Republic to a transient life working in some of the most glamorous watering holes across the globe.

Next, we speak with Louisiana-born blogger and writer Kelly Williams Brown, author of Adulting: How to Become a Grown-up in 468 Easy(ish) Steps. Kelly discusses her transition into adulthood and offers several pieces of advice on the subject, many of which pertain to the kitchen.

Veganism featured broadly in Kristin Lajeunesse’s adulting. She honed her grown-up identity traveling alone across the U.S. in search of vegan food, and shares with us her experience on the road.

Finally, we speak with the Lee Brothers, Matt and Ted Lee, whose passion for Southern food took them from boiled peanut vendors to James Beard Award-winning cookbook authors and media personalities.

We travel from childhood into adulthood on this week’s Louisiana Eats!