Executive chef Kyle Knall, 27, brings inspired Southern flavors to new modern sophistication at Maysville, Sean Joseph’s chic tavern dedicated to American whiskeys in New York’s Flatiron district. The restaurant, named after the purported birthplace of Kentucky Bourbon, lets Knall draw from his native Birmingham culinary roots. He started cooking there in local eateries when he was 16, and soon landed at the city’s fine-dining spot Daniel George, where his growing passion for cooking spurred him to attend local culinary school. As he studied, the young chef also worked under Frank Stitt at Highlands and Chez Fonfon, learning to marry Southern cuisine and French culinary technique; by 20, Knall was sous chef, and he then moved to New York City. At Gramercy Tavern he cooked under Michael Anthony and rose to sous chef there as well.
Knall has been deftly bringing it all back home at Maysville since its 2012 opening; his much-lauded stylish American menu includes hay roasted oysters with salsify and pickled shallots, and poached farm egg grits with duck confit, mushrooms, collard greens and smoked broth. His techniques of smoking and charring ingredients complement the restaurant’s many boutique barrel-aged Bourbons, but he’s also adept at imbuing a high note of flavors into raw and chilled seafood, and cured and pickled seasonal items.
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