CHARLOTTE, N.C. — A Charlotte Chef is making a big splash in the culinary world!
Sam Hart of Counter- was named a finalist for the James Beard Awards Best Chef in the Southeast. Counter- is an intimate, full-sensory restaurant experience featuring themed 10 and 14-course tasting menus.
"Definitely a huge surprise," Hart said about the nomination. "It was not something that we were anywhere close to expecting this year."
Hart said this nomination is huge for his restaurants because they've only been in their current location for three months. Hart said there was a time when they were operating without a restaurant and said with all of the delays they were worried the restaurant might not even open.
"And so you know, coming off of the high of finally having this restaurant open, and then all of a sudden this happening," Hart said. "And just the amount of belief and validation that people have had over these past couple of weeks."
Hart said while he is honored to be a finalist for the James Beard award, he said he also credits his team for this big win.
"It's impossible to think that one individual person could be every aspect of the restaurant prep and create every single dish and element for the menus," Hart said.
The awards are often called The Oscars of food and the Carolinas have a legacy of taking home honors. Hart went on to say this is a big moment for the City of Charlotte as well.
"Charlotte is the largest metropolitan area in the country to never win the James Beard Award," Hart said. "And as a Charlottean, it'll be really awesome to bring that home for us and really continue the establishment of the Charlotte food scene on the national stage."
The James Beard award winners will be honored on June 5 at an event in Chicago.
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