Charleston
Annual Sales: $15 million
Units: 4
Key Personnel:
• TJ Parsell, owner/president
• Michael Nickell, director of operations
• Don Drake, culinary arts director
• Craig Deihl, executive chef, Cypress & Artisan Meat Share
• Kelly Franz, executive chef, Magnolias
• Adam Close, executive chef, Blossom
SINGLE CONCEPTS:
• Blossom (Low Country seafood)
• Cypress (refined, creative American fare)
• Magnolias (upscale Southern cuisine)
• Artisan Meat Share (butcher and sandwich shop)
WHY IT’S COOL: Another recurring theme throughout this Top 25 list is the rise of Southern cuisine in this country. A hotbed of this Southern embrace is Charleston, which has become one of the great restaurant cities below the Mason-Dixon line. Top dog Parsell has a keen eye for culinary talent, and he has loaded his restaurants with chefs who understand this style of cuisine. Chief among them is Craig Deihl, a perennial James Beard nominee for Best Chef in the Southeast. He’s a world-class butcher and the executive chef of highly regarded Cypress. His artisan meats also serve as the backbone of the group’s butcher and sandwich shop. The South is on the rise and HMG is leading the way with terrific restaurants.
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