To Be Understood and Seen: the Chattanooga-Sewanee-Michelin Story
There is a new line of demarcation.
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On Monday morning, the Niels were past Atlanta on I-85 towards South Carolina — Amanda driving, Erik working on his phone — when the news dinged in.
It was a leaked copy — accidentally released early, in a very un-Michelin-way — of the Michelin Guide's American South winners.
The news was supposed to be unveiled in dramatic fashion at that evening's ceremony in Greenville, South Carolina, with restaurant owners and chefs lauded with champagne bars, red carpets, crystal chandeliers and caviar.
Not on I-85.
The Niels wondered, as did other restaurant owners as the leaked copy spread throughout the South:
Do we open this?
Or wait?
The Niels own three of Chattanooga's most enduring and captivating restaurants: Easy Bistro (20 years), Main Street Meats (10 years under their care) and Little Coyote, the baby of the bunch, which opened in 2023.
By virtue of being invited to the ceremony, the Niels knew at least one restaurant would be included. But which?
The leaked list would tell them.
Around the same time, Mallory Grimm was walking back to the hotel after a stroll through downtown Greenville. The chef and owner of LUNCH in Sewanee had gotten to SC earlier than the Niels, arriving with her husband, partner and LUNCH co-founder, Trapp Tubbs.
She opened up the hotel room door.
Trapp had his phone — the leaked list yearning to be read.
Just like the Niels, Trapp and Mallory wondered: do we? Don't we?
There on I-85 and there in a hotel room in Greenville, both couples opened the leaked list, scrolling through the list of 100s of restaurants until the precious and life-changing moment: their restaurant named and recognized by the world's top Guide.
"I was definitely crying," said Mallory, who left a catering business in Nashville to move back to Sewanee, where she and Trapp graduated. They opened the doors to LUNCH in 2023.
"It doesn't feel necessarily real we're on that list. We're still so new and so young," she said. "I feel really humbled being on that list, overcome with gratitude for my staff and our community."
She thought back to that unknown day when an anonymous Michelin Guide must have visited.
"To be understood from an anonymous person visiting LUNCH and to feel seen in that way without us explaining or having to do anything extra," she said.
To be understood and seen.
Welcome to the new world of Michelin.
With Michelin's American South Guire being released, thousands upon thousands of people are now introduced to six regional restaurants, five of which received "Recommended" status:
- Easy Bistro in the West Village
- Judith's in Sewanee
- LUNCH in Sewanee
- Main Street Meats on Main St.
- LIttle Coyote in St. Elmo, which was named a Bib Gourmand restaurant
- The Rosecomb on the North Shore
In doing so, this region — Chattanooga to Sewanee — will be understood and seen in immeasurable ways.
"You get more people," said Amanda. "People that travel more, people that like to dine well and eat well, you’ll have more of those people coming to Chattanooga and ... Sewanee."
Geographically, we know have Michelin-recognized restaurants in four corners of the city, with two more on Monteagle mountain.
On Monday evening, the restaurant world shifted its bearings, its axis now tilted to places once overlooked.
Now, between Atlanta and Nashville — once, the only players — there are now — count them — six Michelin-awarded restaurants.
It is the culinary equivalent of opening a riverfront aquarium. Tourism will shift while restaurant owners and entrepreneurs will consider Chattanooga's smaller market as a viable option.
The way we see ourselves — back-of-house, front-of-house, chefs and guests — will change, too.
In Tennessee, 36 restaurants were named; there's talk that Erik Niel is the only chef-owner with three restaurants on the list.
Back on I-85, as they were driving to Greenville, the Niels decided, just like Mallory and Trapp, to read the leaked emailed copy.
"I kind of wanted the element of surprise," said Amanda. "At the same time, it eased the anxiety going into the ceremony."
"It was pure unadulterated fun at that point," said Erik.
They rolled into Greenville already knowing, sneaking into pregame at the tiny little Jones Oyster Bar with an old friend, then the ceremony: hugging and seeing old faces and heroes, walking on stage to receive the Bib Gourmand award for Little Coyote, there under the spotlight, 32 years of work leading to this, thinking of their son back home as Emeril's son received a two-star recognition, driving home and watching reservation lists at their restaurants blow up, all of it summarized, quite perfectly, into four little words.
"It's really fucking awesome," Erik said.
There's more, of course. He called it a line of demarcation for our city's restaurant world.
Before Michelin.
And After Michelin.
"It's helps what is a very small but burgeoning scene for those who actually travel to eat," he said. "It becomes less of an afterthought and more of a reason to come here."
"Long term, it's huge, man. There's a very strong demarcation now: when this scene started to grow up. In 10 years, hopefully, there are many more names on that list," he said.
"It's a super flex to have all three spots on that list. Credit to everybody who's ever worked in these restaurants. It's incredibly validating to have that recognition."
The Niels got their first Michelin email on August 4.
"Your restaurant is under consideration for inclusion in the 2025 selection of the MICHELIN Guide," the email read.
Two months later, on Oct. 13, more emails arrived. These were the invitations — Dear Erik Niel, Dear Mallory Grimm — to Greenville's unveiling ceremony.
Mallory's emailed invitation got sent to spam. She found it because she was looking for another email.
(The same thing happened to Ryan Smith and Chloe Wright at The Rosecomb, as our friend Lyric Lewin reported at the Times Free Press.)
Earlier this year, Tennessee joined eight other Southern states to join the Michelin Guide.
As Axios reported, these states ponied up $1.6 million for a three-year contract with Michelin; Tennessee agreed to pay $350,000 per year to be considered for inclusion.
Michelin chose the restaurants to visit and review, said Chattanooga Tourism Co.'s Dawn Kimberlin, Communications Manager.
"We did not send Michelin a list of restaurants to visit," she said. "It's completely independent."
Her colleague Allison Wolfe attended the Greenville event. For the Tourism Co., everyone recognizes how powerful this can be.
"While we can't predict the exact economic impact, we do know this kind of global recognition elevates our entire community's profile as a destination," she said. "That recognition is priceless."
Atlanta's metro population hits more than six million; the city has been the lone Southern star in the Michelin Guide for years.
In Atlanta, there are nine one-star restaurants, 12 Bib Gourmand restaurants and 32 recommended restaurants.
Chattanooga's population? Less than 200,000, with more than double in the metro area.
And Sewanee? Some 3,000 people live there.
And now, it can boast not-one, but two Michelin restaurants.
On Friday, LUNCH hosted its annual Harry Potter themed dinner.
How many other Michelin restaurants did that five days after the announcement?
"What mattered to me was sharing it with our staff. Seeing their excitement and seeing them feel proud," Mallory said.
"It means the most to me that our little Sewanee community is proud and my staff feels validated and their work feels validated.
"I jsut feel like all we've been doing is staying true to ourselves and the work everyday," she said. "For that to get recognized feels really fulfilling to me."
All week, as regional growers and farmers came by to deliver produce, she gave them the good news.
"What makes LUNCH special is all our farmers," she said. "Our food is special and our message is clear because of all the amazing produce and meat we can get.
"We owe a lot to our people growing stuff and raising animals and milling grain for us.
"I am so grateful for all of them. I want to make sure I communicate that that matters a lot to us."
Story ideas, questions, feedback? Interested in partnering with us? Email: david@foodasaverb.com
This story is 100% human generated; no AI chatbot was used in the creation of this content.
food as a verb thanks our sustaining partner:
food as a verb thanks our story sponsor:
Society of Work
On Monday morning, the Niels were past Atlanta on I-85 towards South Carolina — Amanda driving, Erik working on his phone — when the news dinged in.
It was a leaked copy — accidentally released early, in a very un-Michelin-way — of the Michelin Guide's American South winners.
The news was supposed to be unveiled in dramatic fashion at that evening's ceremony in Greenville, South Carolina, with restaurant owners and chefs lauded with champagne bars, red carpets, crystal chandeliers and caviar.
Not on I-85.
The Niels wondered, as did other restaurant owners as the leaked copy spread throughout the South:
Do we open this?
Or wait?
The Niels own three of Chattanooga's most enduring and captivating restaurants: Easy Bistro (20 years), Main Street Meats (10 years under their care) and Little Coyote, the baby of the bunch, which opened in 2023.
By virtue of being invited to the ceremony, the Niels knew at least one restaurant would be included. But which?
The leaked list would tell them.
Around the same time, Mallory Grimm was walking back to the hotel after a stroll through downtown Greenville. The chef and owner of LUNCH in Sewanee had gotten to SC earlier than the Niels, arriving with her husband, partner and LUNCH co-founder, Trapp Tubbs.
She opened up the hotel room door.
Trapp had his phone — the leaked list yearning to be read.
Just like the Niels, Trapp and Mallory wondered: do we? Don't we?
There on I-85 and there in a hotel room in Greenville, both couples opened the leaked list, scrolling through the list of 100s of restaurants until the precious and life-changing moment: their restaurant named and recognized by the world's top Guide.
"I was definitely crying," said Mallory, who left a catering business in Nashville to move back to Sewanee, where she and Trapp graduated. They opened the doors to LUNCH in 2023.
"It doesn't feel necessarily real we're on that list. We're still so new and so young," she said. "I feel really humbled being on that list, overcome with gratitude for my staff and our community."
She thought back to that unknown day when an anonymous Michelin Guide must have visited.
"To be understood from an anonymous person visiting LUNCH and to feel seen in that way without us explaining or having to do anything extra," she said.
To be understood and seen.
Welcome to the new world of Michelin.
With Michelin's American South Guire being released, thousands upon thousands of people are now introduced to six regional restaurants, five of which received "Recommended" status:
- Easy Bistro in the West Village
- Judith's in Sewanee
- LUNCH in Sewanee
- Main Street Meats on Main St.
- LIttle Coyote in St. Elmo, which was named a Bib Gourmand restaurant
- The Rosecomb on the North Shore
In doing so, this region — Chattanooga to Sewanee — will be understood and seen in immeasurable ways.
"You get more people," said Amanda. "People that travel more, people that like to dine well and eat well, you’ll have more of those people coming to Chattanooga and ... Sewanee."
Geographically, we know have Michelin-recognized restaurants in four corners of the city, with two more on Monteagle mountain.
On Monday evening, the restaurant world shifted its bearings, its axis now tilted to places once overlooked.
Now, between Atlanta and Nashville — once, the only players — there are now — count them — six Michelin-awarded restaurants.
It is the culinary equivalent of opening a riverfront aquarium. Tourism will shift while restaurant owners and entrepreneurs will consider Chattanooga's smaller market as a viable option.
The way we see ourselves — back-of-house, front-of-house, chefs and guests — will change, too.
In Tennessee, 36 restaurants were named; there's talk that Erik Niel is the only chef-owner with three restaurants on the list.
Back on I-85, as they were driving to Greenville, the Niels decided, just like Mallory and Trapp, to read the leaked emailed copy.
"I kind of wanted the element of surprise," said Amanda. "At the same time, it eased the anxiety going into the ceremony."
"It was pure unadulterated fun at that point," said Erik.
They rolled into Greenville already knowing, sneaking into pregame at the tiny little Jones Oyster Bar with an old friend, then the ceremony: hugging and seeing old faces and heroes, walking on stage to receive the Bib Gourmand award for Little Coyote, there under the spotlight, 32 years of work leading to this, thinking of their son back home as Emeril's son received a two-star recognition, driving home and watching reservation lists at their restaurants blow up, all of it summarized, quite perfectly, into four little words.
"It's really fucking awesome," Erik said.
There's more, of course. He called it a line of demarcation for our city's restaurant world.
Before Michelin.
And After Michelin.
"It's helps what is a very small but burgeoning scene for those who actually travel to eat," he said. "It becomes less of an afterthought and more of a reason to come here."
"Long term, it's huge, man. There's a very strong demarcation now: when this scene started to grow up. In 10 years, hopefully, there are many more names on that list," he said.
"It's a super flex to have all three spots on that list. Credit to everybody who's ever worked in these restaurants. It's incredibly validating to have that recognition."
The Niels got their first Michelin email on August 4.
"Your restaurant is under consideration for inclusion in the 2025 selection of the MICHELIN Guide," the email read.
Two months later, on Oct. 13, more emails arrived. These were the invitations — Dear Erik Niel, Dear Mallory Grimm — to Greenville's unveiling ceremony.
Mallory's emailed invitation got sent to spam. She found it because she was looking for another email.
(The same thing happened to Ryan Smith and Chloe Wright at The Rosecomb, as our friend Lyric Lewin reported at the Times Free Press.)
Earlier this year, Tennessee joined eight other Southern states to join the Michelin Guide.
As Axios reported, these states ponied up $1.6 million for a three-year contract with Michelin; Tennessee agreed to pay $350,000 per year to be considered for inclusion.
Michelin chose the restaurants to visit and review, said Chattanooga Tourism Co.'s Dawn Kimberlin, Communications Manager.
"We did not send Michelin a list of restaurants to visit," she said. "It's completely independent."
Her colleague Allison Wolfe attended the Greenville event. For the Tourism Co., everyone recognizes how powerful this can be.
"While we can't predict the exact economic impact, we do know this kind of global recognition elevates our entire community's profile as a destination," she said. "That recognition is priceless."
Atlanta's metro population hits more than six million; the city has been the lone Southern star in the Michelin Guide for years.
In Atlanta, there are nine one-star restaurants, 12 Bib Gourmand restaurants and 32 recommended restaurants.
Chattanooga's population? Less than 200,000, with more than double in the metro area.
And Sewanee? Some 3,000 people live there.
And now, it can boast not-one, but two Michelin restaurants.
On Friday, LUNCH hosted its annual Harry Potter themed dinner.
How many other Michelin restaurants did that five days after the announcement?
"What mattered to me was sharing it with our staff. Seeing their excitement and seeing them feel proud," Mallory said.
"It means the most to me that our little Sewanee community is proud and my staff feels validated and their work feels validated.
"I jsut feel like all we've been doing is staying true to ourselves and the work everyday," she said. "For that to get recognized feels really fulfilling to me."
All week, as regional growers and farmers came by to deliver produce, she gave them the good news.
"What makes LUNCH special is all our farmers," she said. "Our food is special and our message is clear because of all the amazing produce and meat we can get.
"We owe a lot to our people growing stuff and raising animals and milling grain for us.
"I am so grateful for all of them. I want to make sure I communicate that that matters a lot to us."
Story ideas, questions, feedback? Interested in partnering with us? Email: david@foodasaverb.com
This story is 100% human generated; no AI chatbot was used in the creation of this content.
Food as a verb thanks our story sponsor:
Food as a Verb Thanks our sustaining partner:
Food as a verb thanks our story sponsor:
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