A Charlotte restaurant made the New York Times’ list of 50 best restaurants in America
The awards and accolades just keep coming for one of Charlotte’s most well-known high end restaurants and its owners — Leah & Louise has made the New York Times’ list of 50 best restaurants in America for 2022.
What the NYT said: “At Greg and Subrina Collier’s little restaurant, the ride starts the minute fried chicken skins seasoned in the style of Zapp’s voodoo chips hit the table. The names of the dishes are almost as fun as eating them: Wabbit Season, a classic Country Captain made with rabbit, or Mud Island, a perfect piece of blackened catfish with catfish stew. The real sleeper, though, is Leah’s Cabbage, named after Mr. Collier’s sister. He roasts whole conical cabbage, then bathes it in pork-neck bisque touched with pepper honey and chunks of smoked sausage. It will forever change how you think of cabbage. The restaurant, in a repurposed industrial development called Camp North End, is the first of five new places the Colliers and their restaurant group have planned for the complex, designed to provide opportunities to Black cooks and managers.”
[RELATED: 4 new restaurants just dropped at Camp North End in Charlotte.]
A timely note: The recognition comes right as the Colliers’ BayHaven Food & Wine Festival is set to feature nearly 100 Black chefs from around the country in Charlotte from Oct. 19-23.
Other honors for Leah & Louise, the Colliers
By any measure, the Colliers have become well known among foodies for bringing their own style to classic Southern dishes in Charlotte, with a focus on Mississippi River Valley foodways. Just a few of their other accomplishments that have brought them to the national stage include:
- The restaurant was also recognized by Esquire magazine as one of its best new restaurants in America in 2020, pandemic notwithstanding.
- Chef Greg Collier was featured in CharlotteFive’s The Skillet, How Black cuisine became America’s supper in 2021.
- The Colliers started BayHaven Restaurant Group, which includes six restaurant concepts and puts on the BayHaven Food & Wine Festival.
He was a finalist for the James Beard Awards’ Best Chef: Southeast honor in 2022 — for the third time.
The chef was also named executive chef of the Centurian Lounge at Charlotte Douglas International Airport in 2022.
Leah & Louise
Location: Camp North End, 300 Camp Rd, Charlotte, NC 28206
Neighborhood: Druid Hills South
Cuisine: Southern
