About Zula

Southern Raised, God Carried

I was born in Biloxi, Mississippi in 1983. I was raised in the Deep South in Lucedale, MS Mississippi and Alabama with roots stretching into the heart of New Orleans. I come from a long line of cooks, community builders, and praying men and women. In my family, food wasn’t just food. It was love, survival, faith, and a way to take care of people.

I started working in my daddy’s restaurant at 8 years old handing out plates, learning pride in the work, and understanding community through service. My daddy is Douglas Lawrence, and people drove from miles around for his food. Especially his crawfish and his hospitality.

My family fed neighbors, raised children, served communities, and stood in resilience even through storms like Katrina. Our family business in New Orleans, We Got It, owned by my Aunt Kim and her husband, was one of the first places to open back up after the storm. They screwed in one lightbulb, turned the stove on, and went right back to feeding people. Aunt Kim is a Jefferson Award winner, and President George W. Bush visited my grandmother Myra Dunnaway stood there witnessing that moment of faith, hope, and rebuilding.

I come from generations of strength from Mama Zula, to my mom Geneva, to my bonus mama Shelia, to my grandmother Myra, and Viola Lawrence we call her Muh, my daddy’s mama my 89-year-old grandmother who helped raise me and is still here with me today. Their prayers, their hands, and their kitchens shaped me.

I grew up surrounded by big family cooking and community my mom comes from a family of nine from Louisiana, and my dad is one of eight from Mississippi. Add in the love and lessons from Alabama, and you get Missi-Louisi-Bama the flavor of my life.

I’ve owned two restaurants MissiLouisiBama and Rocky’s Rockin’ Diner and hosted pop-up shops, bringing soul food, joy, and community everywhere God planted me.

I’ve cooked across the South Mississippi, Alabama, New Orleans, Texas, Florida and even in the Dominican Republic. Food raised me. Faith carried me. Grace kept me.

Today, I’m a mama first blessed to raise four beautiful children: Jazlynn, Tyson, Haliegh, and Taylor. I’m walking into this next chapter covered in grace, growth, and God’s timing.

Now I’m in my soft era sharing food, faith, my family, travel, Walmart finds, and everyday joy as a Southern lifestyle creator.

Eat. Pray. Snack. Bloom. 🤍
Welcome to my world warm, grateful, gentle, and rooted in love.