2011 James Beard Nominee - Best Chef South, JBF, February 2011
Chef Hari Pulapaka is honoured to have been named a 2011 James Beard-Best Chef South nominee. Only 19 Chefs received this nomination in a five state region including Florida, Louisiana, Alabama, Mississippi, and Arkansas of which 8 nominees hailed from Florida ... More

Wine: The View From Orlando, November 2011
James Beard Nominees Charity Dinner at Cress Restaurant: The Spinoff More...

Floridian View Magazine: Best Restaurant - West Volusia, September 2011
Thanks to the readers of Floridian View Magazine for voting Cress the Best Restaurant in West Volusia. Congratulations to all the other winners! More...

Orlando Weekly: Dining Feature (Big Beards), Faiyaz Kara, August 25 2011
Call it a gastronomic all-star game, a midsummer classic bringing five of Central Florida’s finest chefs together under one roof for one night. The names – Kevin Fonzo of K Restaurant and Wine Bar, Scott Hunnel of Victoria and Albert’s, James and Julie Petrakis of the Ravenous Pig and Hari Pulapaka of Cress Restaurant – are notable in their own right, but more so for having been nominated by the James Beard Foundation for Best Chef: South. More...

Orlando Magazine: Dining Feature, Joseph Hayes, July 2011
“I’ve been an academic most of my life,” says Hari Pulapaka, but there’s nothing staid and scholarly coming out of his kitchen at Cress. Time is a precious commodity for this 45-year-old chef. A full-time mathematics professor at Stetson University ... More

Daytona Beach News Journal: Dining Feature, Tom Iacuzio, June 2011
Whether in the kitchen or in the classroom, Chef Hari Pulapaka is an expert at measuring out variables to create the perfect equation. His work recently got the executive chef of Cress Restaurant in DeLand and Stetson University math professor nominated ... More

Floridian View Magazine: Dining Feature, Laurie Sterbens, April 2011
Now that Cress Restaurant is a solid success, someone should probably tell Chef Hari Pulapaka and his wife, co-owner Jenneffer Pulapaka, that they can quit their day jobs. Yet both Hari and Jenneffer continue to maintain full-time professional positions in addition to carving out culinary careers ... More

Restaurant Forum: Cover Feature, Alicia Callanan Mandigo, March-April 2011
Its a small restaurant in a small town built on a might melange of flavors. Cress Restaurant describes itself as a restaurant specializing in cuisine that is locally sourced and globally inspired, but its really much more complex than that.

Self Magazine: Featured Recipes by Merritt Watts, August 2010
Hari Pulapaka, chef and owner of Cress Restaurant in DeLand, Florida, scored a spot at a local community garden to sprout his organic produce for vitamin-packed salads like this one. The homemade dressing he created stays fresh in the fridge for a week ... More

One Plate A Time: Full Sail Documentary: Liam Pool, September 2010
Hari Pulapaka takes some time out from his career as a mathematician for a leading university to follow his passion as a gourmet chef. His successful restaurant is only the beginning ... More

On Dining: BrightHouse Channel 300 Dining Feature, Rona Gindin, July 2010
Sentiment is so strong about Cress, a truly unusual gourmet-casual restaurant, that locals will do anything to keep their favorite DeLand dig busy. I was brought to this charming and ambitious restaurant by my former accountant and his wife; we'd never socialized before yet they'd insisted on treating me to a Cress encounter just so I'd give the place some press. Done. Cress is truly unusual ... More

Florida Trend Magazine: Dining Feature, Chris Sherman, November 2009
Even in late summer when heat cripples most gardens, Cress turns out an elegant vegetarian composition, a stacked confection of lentils, beans, squash and peas topped with creamy grits infused with wild mushrooms and thyme. It sits in a creamy pool of peanut miso sauce; a nest of crisply fried shoestring parsnips is the crowning touch ... More

Orlando Sentinel: Multiple Features, Heather Mcpherson, 2008 - present
In Cress, DeLand lands itself a true dining destination ... More 1 ... More 2 ... More 3

Orlando Weekly: Multiple Features, Faiyaz Kara, 2009 - present
Monday night is always date night for Cress Restaurant chef Hari Pulapaka and his wife Jenneffer. Shutting the doors to their intimate DeLand boîte once a week allows the charming culinarians an opportunity to spice up their love life, while doing the same for their tastebuds. So where does the personable pair seek retreat, and on what exactly do they nibble? ... More 1 ... More 2 ... More 3 ... More 4

WMFE 90.7-NPR: Intersection, Mark Simpson, December 2010
Every year, Intersection host Mark Simpson tries to get at least one food episode in for listeners. This year Intersection digs into some locally produced treats with great results. Michael Tiner, who directs the Homegrown Co-Op food market discusses the state of the local food movement in Central Florida, and brings a wide spectrum of snacks. Meanwhile Hari Pulapaka, who co-founded Cress Restaurant in Deland, brings a broccoli soup made from local ingredients, as well as a succulent baby back pork ribs accompanied by a sauce with burning ghost chilies ... More