Tina Heath

Years of Participation

2016-2020, 2022-2024

David and Tina Schuttenberg are the operating partners and creative force behind Charleston, SC based Always Awkward Hospitality, known for bringing Kwei Fei on James Island and Beautiful South in Downtown Charleston. David oversees all things culinary, while Tina handles the business side, and Marketing/Social Media.

Tina’s early career focus in retail and fashion transposed easily to hospitality, and helped propel her to the creative director role at Dean and Deluca before moving to Charleston in 2015. Her skillset has allowed a seamless transition into restaurants, though she never worked in one before starting Kwei Fei with David.

David has been a kitchen rat for the past 19 years, preferring to keep his knife skills sharp and his cooking acumen well honed, over a passive culinary role within his kitchens. After a career change in 2003, he worked in some of New York’s finest kitchens including Tom Colicchio’s Craft, Zak Pelacio’s venerable Fatty Crab, and was Culinary Director at arguably the country’s best butcher shop, Dickson’s Farmstand Meats.

Ironically, it was professional failures early in their Charleston lives that led the couple to open the culitsh Kwei Fei, and they’re newest concept Beautiful South. This newest space focusses on Pearl River Delta region of Southeastern China and American-Chinese Takeout Classics. Kwei Fei explores the foods of Western China in regions such as Xian, Yibin and Sichuan.

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