by TM Petaccia

This year, 73 savory chefs, pastry chefs, and mixologists from across North Carolina will be vying for top honors in their respective categories when the 2025 NCRLA Chef Showdown kicks off its preliminary rounds next month. Of them, 18 hail from Charlotte restaurants and bars.

Celebrating its ninth year, the Showdown is the North Carolina Restaurant and Lodging Association’s premiere event to not only give recognition to the talents of the state’s culinary professionals, but also spotlight the diversity and flexibility of North Carolina proteins, produce, and distilled spirits.

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Chef Competitions

The competition starts on April 7 with the first regional savory and pastry rounds at Sandhills Community College in Southern Pines. That will be followed by the Charlotte-area round on May 12 at Central Piedmont Community College, with further regional contests in Morehead City, Raleigh, and Asheville. Unlike TV competitions, chefs are not given a secret ingredient or restricted to a set menu. However, they must use produce, proteins, and artisanal foods (e.g., cheeses) grown and curated in North Carolina.

Of the 45 savory chefs competing, seven are from Charlotte:

Allen Evans, ET Catering
Chase Young, Union Barbecue
Chris Childs, Kaioken Labs
Eric Crays, Your Farms Your Table
Myles Scaglione, Dot Dot Dot
Tchnavia Carter, Community Matters Café
Whit Thomas, Mazi

“I didn’t come back to Charlotte to be quiet or play it safe,” Thomas says. “I came back to cook loud, lead with purpose, and stay the course. Every opportunity, especially something like Chef Showdown, is a chance to show what resilience looks like in real time.”

The pastry chef category has a heavy Charlotte influence, with six of the eleven competitors hailing from our city:

Brenda Feaster, Brenda’s Creations
Josh Dobson, Peppervine
Luis Rojas, Charlotte Marriott City Center
Oscar Johnson, Jimmy Pearls / Chesapeake Kitchen
Shikira Grimes, Community Matters Café
Suzette Ramsey, CakeAble

Those coming out of the five preliminary rounds will square off in the Charlotte or Raleigh regionals, with fifteen savory and five pastry chefs moving on to the grand finale August 4 at Bay 7 at the American Tobacco Campus in Durham.

Johnson, who previously took home top savory chef honors as NCRLA Chef of the Year in 2022, looks to add a pastry trophy to his mantle. “I’ve decided to throw my name in the hat for NCRLA Pastry Chef of the Year because I believe that I will introduce a fresh, different perspective on desserts that not many people have witnessed before,” Johnson says. “My approach is to showcase Southern desserts that aren’t commonly talked about, by way of my Virginia roots.”

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Mixologist Competition

The mixology competition pairs each participant with a North Carolina distillery. There will be two preliminary rounds: April 14 at Piccione Vineyards in Ronda, NC, and April 28 at End of Days Distillery in Wilmington. The semifinals will be held in Asheville and Greenville, with six finalists heading to Durham for the finals.

Of the 17 mixologists competing statewide, five are from Charlotte:

Ashley Sarkis, Yunta — partnering with Oaklore Distilling Co. (Matthews)
Connor Schlosser, Folia — partnering with Chemist Spirits (Asheville)
Lauren Burkert, Free Range Brewing — partnering with Great Wagon Road Distilling (Charlotte)
Sean Teague, Chief’s Modern Cocktail Parlor — partnering with Southern Artisan Spirits (Kings Mountain)
Sekani Akunyun, Lorem Ipsum Listening Bar — partnering with Mystic Farm & Distillery (Durham)

In addition to the Best Mixologist award, a special award will be given to the creator of the best no-alcohol mocktail.

“Jack Schute from Oaklore Distillery asked if I would like to partner with them this year,” Sarkis says. “I love being supportive of local ingredients, and it sounded like a lot of fun. Plus, they have a mocktail component, too. I’m excited for the opportunity.”

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Other Special Awards

While a panel of judges will decide the main winners in the chef, pastry chef, and mixologist competitions, two additional citation awards are also at stake.

“Undeniably Dairy” awards will be presented to the chef, pastry chef, and bartender who best showcases the use of North Carolina cow’s milk dairy products in their dishes or beverages.

Attendees at the Grand Finale will vote for “People’s Choice” awards for best savory dish, dessert, cocktail, and mocktail. The grand finale this year, for the first time, will also feature a North Carolina wine bar.

In addition to Johnson, former Charlotte NCRLA winners include Matthew Deering and Matthew Krenz (savory); Jossie Lukacik (neé Perlmutter), Ann Marie Stefaney, Miranda Brown, and Jaimie Turner (pastry); and Amanda Britton and Colleen Hughes (mixology).

While the preliminary and semifinal rounds are not open to the public, tickets for the grand finale will go on sale in June. More information can be found at ncchefshowdown.com.

The NCRLA Chef Showdown is sponsored by the NC Department of Agriculture’s GoToBeNC initiative. The top-title winners will serve as members of the 2025-2026 GotToBeNC team of culinary and beverage ambassadors.