Raised in rural Virginia, Sean Brock is a distinguished chef and restauranteur known for his
involvement in the repatriation of the Southern pantry and cuisine over the past 20 years. For
over a decade, he was the chef and partner of McCrady’s and McCrady’s Tavern in Charleston,
South Carolina, as well as the founding chef of Husk Restaurants, located in Charleston,
Nashville, and Savannah. In 2019, he laid down roots in Nashville to open three ambitious and
unique F&B endeavors: Audrey, Joyland, and June.
In 2020, Brock opened Joyland, the first of his solo restaurant projects, featuring high-quality
fast food inspired by his love of cheeseburgers and Southern fried chicken. In October of 2021,
Brock debuted his flagship restaurant, Audrey, in East Nashville. Named after his grandmother,
Audrey is where he has furthered his life’s work of studying Appalachian foodways and
hospitality. In summer of 2022, he opened June, located above Audrey, as a modern dining
concept offering a unique tasting menu format that curiously explores the possibilities of
ingredients indigenous to the American South.
Brock won the James Beard Award for Best Chef, Southeast in 2010, and is a four-time finalist
for Outstanding Chef, as well as a three-time finalist for Rising Star Chef. His first cookbook,
Heritage, is a New York Times Bestseller and winner of the 2015 American Cooking James
Beard Award. Brock’s second book, SOUTH, was also a New York Times Best Seller and was
nominated for a James Beard Award. Brock hosted season 2 of the Emmy Award-winning
television show Mind of a Chef, produced by Anthony Bourdain. In 2019, Sean was featured on
the popular Netflix show, Chef’s Table.