The ‘Top Chef’ restaurant in North Carolina

An impressive “Top Chef” restaurant is located right here in North Carolina. Here’s everything you need to know about Catch. 

“Top Chef” is a reality competition series that has been airing on Bravo since 2006. During each season (and there have been 22 so far!), a group of chefs compete against one another in various culinary challenges. They’re then judged by professional chefs and/or notable members of the food and wine industry before one contestant is sent home at the end of each episode.

There’s a lot more that goes into the show, and, frankly, every episode, but I wanted to give a general overview for those who are completely unfamiliar with the program. You can check out the Top Chef official website to learn more about the show, its previous contestants, and where you can watch it. The most notable aspect to highlight is that one chef, who previously competed on Top Chef, has been operating an acclaimed restaurant in North Carolina for nearly 20 years. 

Keith Rhodes, a James Beard award finalist, competed on Season 9 of Top Chef. Prior to his time on the show, he established Catch in Wilmington in 2006. According to the restaurant’s website, “The chef has always favored wild caught or sustainably raised seafood and continually supports local fisheries and organic farmers. On any given day his coastal creations can take you on a global escape with flavors that traverse borders and seas.”

Rhodes takes great pride in the dishes he creates for his restaurant, drawing menu inspiration from the seasonal options available in the state. So, what does the No. 1 Top Chef restaurant in North Carolina serve? Let’s dive into Catch! (Pun fully intended.)

Everything you need to know about the Top Chef restaurant Catch

Chef Keith Rhodes and his partner, Angela, established the Top Chef restaurant Catch in the early 2000s. The restaurant’s website notes that they intended to serve “the best local ingredients to support the local North Carolina seafood market,” which is something they still strive to achieve every day. 

According to an article from Food & Wine, Rhodes is inspired by Port City markets when it comes time for him to select seafood and vegetables for Catch’s menu. He told the outlet that his mother was a Seventh-day Adventist, and that he and his family practiced a vegetarian diet throughout his childhood in the Tar Heel state because of that. He added, “the organic, natural lifestyle is a lot of my soul.”

Speaking with Cape Fear Living, Rhodes said, “Our food at Catch can be described as New American with international influences. Our main focus is heavily pescatarian using only the best ingredients.” One of Catch’s most beloved dishes is Rhodes’s North Carolina Sweet Potato Salad, which pays tribute to his love of vegetables and high-quality ingredients. It contains sweet potatoes, local goat cheese, shelled hemp seeds, baby spinach, and either cranberries or strawberries, depending on what’s in season. 

Other staple menu items include champagne steamed mussels, shrimp & grits, and Black Angus steak for those who don’t feel like eating seafood. Rhodes told Cape Fear Living that he doesn’t really like chicken, so it makes sense that you wouldn’t find that among the other dining options at Catch. The full menu can be found here. The restaurant is closed on Sundays and Mondays, but is open Tuesday through Saturday from 5:30 p.m. until 8:30 p.m.

While the restaurant is a source of pride in and of itself, Chef Rhodes as an individual is equally important to his community. He mentors up-and-coming chefs and also partakes in outreach projects for local kids in his spare time. 

Other notable Top Chef contestants from North Carolina 

Keith Rhodes is actually one of several North Carolina natives who have competed on Top Chef over the years. Most recently, Chef Savannah Miller—who previously served as the chef de cuisine at M Tempura in Durham—competed on Season 21. Following her time on the Bravo competition show, Miller spoke with Let’s Talk Durham about the experience. When asked if she’s changed now that she’s famous following her impressive stint on the show, the chef responded, “Absolutely not! I’m a North Carolina girl at heart, and being back here for the last seven years has been the best homecoming and smartest decision of my life. I love the urge to travel and cook in other cities, but I can do that without uprooting my entire life. I want to stay in Durham to be near family and friends.”

Jamie Lynch was a competitor on Season 14 and currently resides in Charlotte. He serves as the Chef Partner for 5th Street Group, which includes restaurants in locations across the country, including La Belle Helene in Charlotte. 

Asheville’s Ashleigh Shanti competed on the show as well. According to The Creative Independent, Shanti “was named an Eater Young Gun in 2019 and was a finalist for the James Beard ‘Rising Star Chef of the Year’ award in 2020. She was also a top five ‘cheftestant’ on season 19 of Bravo’s ‘Top Chef’ and was the winner of ‘Restaurant Wars’.”

This article first appeared on Good Info News Wire and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.

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