Society of 1738 – “A Night to Remember”

Chef Kevin Mitchell Pays Tribute to the African American Cooks of Drayton Hall

April 27, 2019

 

A memorable evening, indeed! Chef Kevin Mitchell paid tribute to the African American cooks of Drayton Hall at a Society of 1738 program, by devising a tasteful menu of offerings, borrowed from historical research of the Drayton Papers and enriched by his own expertise as a chef with a deep knowledge of tradition. The accent was on local foods, which were prepared by his students at the Culinary Institute of Charleston.

Chef Mitchell, a well-renowned young chef in Charleston, took his Masters in Southern Studies from the University of Mississippi with my son George, and is a friend of his and mine. He explained each course and added the all-important human dimension to the story behind the dinner he prepared.

At the table with Mary Sue and me was Drayton Hall’s new curator of education, Amber Nicole Satterthwaite, and historian David Shields, who has written a number of books on Southern cuisine and cooking, and is a mentor to Kevin. We had interesting discussions about the history of rice and my experiences with food in West Africa.

A special treat was to see friends from Drayton Hall, and for all of us to gather for this fine dinner in the new George W. McDaniel Education Center, a year after it opened as part of the Sally Reahard Visitors Center. Congratulations to Carter C. Hudgins, staff, and Board, and to Kevin for producing it. It was a pleasure for Mary Sue and me to participate in its being put to such memorable use.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Header Image: Society of 1738 Event with Chef Kevin Mitchell introducing each course.

All images courtesy of the author unless otherwise noted.