Winning Bon Appétit’s ‘Best New Restaurant’

Like most Johnson & Wales University grads, Sean Brock '00 pushed himself to be the best. Now, Bon Appétit says he is — the magazine named Brock’s Charleston restaurant, Husk, the best new restaurant in America.

Chef Stands Out for Growing Local 
Bon Appétit highlights what our students learned when Brock was a guest speaker at JWU; he uses only locally-grown ingredients.

“Brock's self-imposed restrictions separate him from the pack of pretenders. But noble causes alone don't make a restaurant great. In this case it's the fact that Brock is a helluva cook.” 

Mouthwatering Southern Cooking
A James Beard Award winner, Brock got a rave New York Times review. Bon Appétit had a similar reaction. Fair warning: don’t read if you’re hungry!

“A meal at Husk begins with buttermilk dinner rolls sprinkled with benne seeds ... You know how people tell you not to fill up on bread? When you’re at Husk, you can ignore them.

“After that it's on to wood-fired clams with Benton’s sausage, crispy pig’s-ear lettuce wraps, and country ham-flecked pimiento cheese on heirloom-wheat crackers.

“And do not leave without trying the smoky fried chicken skins served with hot sauce and honey.”

Skills, Resources of a Modern Chef
Why is Husk the best in the US, Bon Appétit asks? “Brock isn’t reinventing Southern food … He's trying to re-create the food his grandma knew—albeit with the skill and resources of a modern chef.”

“As a result, he (and Husk) has become a torchbearer for an honest style of home cooking that many of us never truly tasted until now.”

Your Culinary Career
Inspired? Start building your skills at our College of Culinary Arts — Bon Appetit may be raving about you someday.