A First Meeting Rooted in Warmth, Food, and a Remarkable Connection — Including a Fun Fact About the Future of Food Beyond Our Planet
HOUSTON, TX — June 18, 2026 — Ocean Root, the Texas-based artisan sea salt and wellness spice company, was honored to accept an invitation from Chef Norma Elletson to visit the Culinary Institute LeNotre in Houston on Thursday, June 18, 2026 — a visit that left Co-Founder Gabriela Munoz Castillo deeply moved, inspired, and with a newfound perspective on the future of food itself.
From the moment she arrived, Gabriela was struck by the warmth that defines the Institute's culture. The genuine connection between students and teachers was immediately felt — visible in the encouragement shared across every plate, and in the way each instructor supported their students as they presented their work with pride and confidence.
The highlight of the visit was lunch, prepared entirely by the student chefs, each of whom presented and described their own creation. The food was, in Gabriela's own words, absolutely lovely — a testament to the talent being cultivated within those walls and the dedication of the faculty who nurture it.
Connections Rooted in Tradition
Among the most meaningful moments of the visit were conversations with Chef Mike Gabriel, Chef Instructor, and Christelle Pradat, Director of Education — two individuals whose passion for food runs far deeper than technique. Both share a profound love for family traditions passed down through food: the recipes, rituals, and stories carried from one generation to the next through the simple act of cooking and gathering at the table. For Gabriela, whose own work with Ocean Root is deeply rooted in that same reverence for tradition and nature, the connection felt immediate and true.
It was the kind of meeting that is difficult to explain — and yet impossible to ignore. As Gabriela reflects, it calls to mind the words of Kahlil Gibran in The Prophet: that we should listen to our omens. This connection, she believes, is exactly that.
"When you meet people who speak the same language of the heart — through food, through family, through the wisdom passed down across generations — you recognize it immediately," said Gabriela Munoz Castillo, Co-Founder of Ocean Root. "This felt like an omen. The kind you don't walk away from."
A Partnership That Reaches Beyond Our Orbit
One of the most fascinating discoveries of the visit was learning about the Culinary Institute LeNotre's partnership with NASA through the NASA HUNCH Culinary Challenge — an extraordinary program that partners culinary schools and high schools across the United States with NASA, focused on real-world, project-based learning in science, engineering, and innovation. (Ocean Root is not a participant in this challenge — but it was too remarkable not to mention.) Student chefs are challenged to create dishes that are not only nutritionally sound but genuinely palatable for astronauts living and working beyond Earth's atmosphere.
What makes this challenge so fascinating — and humbling — is a little-known fun fact: food actually tastes different in space. The absence of gravity causes bodily fluids to shift, dulling the sense of taste and smell, which means chefs must think in an entirely new dimension when designing these meals. It is a reminder, as Gabriela reflects, of how much we take for granted the extraordinary abundance of food that nature provides us here on Earth — and how profoundly we must rethink that relationship as humanity ventures further from our home planet.
"We underappreciate the abundance that nature gives us every single day," said Gabriela Munoz Castillo, Co-Founder of Ocean Root. "To sit in a room where young chefs are solving the problem of how to feed human beings beyond our orbit — that puts everything into perspective. It is humbling and extraordinary all at once."
A Gifted Book and a Spiritual Connection
At the close of the visit, Gabriela was gifted a copy of Appetites — the memoir of Marie LeNotre, the remarkable woman behind the LeNotre legacy. Rich with reflection, struggle, and the quiet rewards of a life built on hard work and passion, the book left a deep impression. Each chapter opens with a carefully chosen quote — and one in particular stopped Gabriela in her tracks: the words of Pierre Teilhard de Chardin — "We are not human beings having a spiritual experience, we are spiritual beings having a human experience."
It was, as Gabriela describes it, a sweet coincidence. Ocean Root's own blog, We Are Spirits in a Human Body, published on the Ocean Root website, is built around that very same philosophy — a reflection of Gabriela's lifelong journey as a certified herbalist and her mission to honor the wisdom of nature through food, plants, and intentional living. To find those same words waiting inside the pages of Marie LeNotre's memoir felt like nothing short of a sign.
Looking Ahead
During the visit, conversations also turned toward the future — including the possibility of educating Culinary Institute LeNotre students on the use of Ocean Root's artisan salt blends, and preparing young competitors for the National High School BBQ Association competition scheduled for November 2026.
Ocean Root is honored to have been welcomed into the Culinary Institute LeNotre family by Chef Norma Elletson, and looks forward to what grows from this meaningful first connection — here on Earth, and perhaps someday, beyond it.
About Ocean Root
Ocean Root is a Texas-based artisan food company craftin, hand-harvested Fleur de Sel blends and wellness spice mixes rooted in nature, tradition, and intentional living. Learn more at ocean-root.com.
About the Culinary Institute LeNotre
The Culinary Institute LeNotre is one of Houston's most respected culinary institutions, dedicated to developing the next generation of culinary talent through world-class education, real-world partnerships, and a deep commitment to craft and community.
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