About Amethyst

Wha Goin’ On Yall Boi!

I’m Amethyst.

I’m from North Charleston, South Carolina, and my work sits at the intersection of food, history, and community. I focus on Southern foodways, especially Black foodways of the diaspora and in the Lowcountry and within Gullah Geechee communities.

I spent over 15 years working in restaurants before shifting into writing, research, and curatorial work. That background still shapes everything I do. I approach this work as a chef first, but also as someone responsible for documenting and interpreting the systems around the food. My work now includes reporting, recipe development, oral history, and long-term research projects grounded in relationships with farmers, fishermen, and producers across the South.

My writing has appeared in The New York Times, Food & Wine, Eater, Serious Eats, Garden & Gun, Southern Living, Plate Magazine, Cuisine Noir, The Kitchn, and more. Across all of it, I’m interested in telling fuller, more accurate stories about Southern food and the people behind it.

I’m the co-creator of the South Carolina State Museum’s Harvesting Heritage series, a multi-year, statewide initiative exploring food, land, and culture across South Carolina (specifically the impact of Black communities across the state), with a major exhibition in development. That work includes building public programs, leading research and oral history initiatives, and working directly with communities across the state to document living food traditions in real time.

I also contribute to larger food platforms, including Charleston Wine + Food and the Food & Wine Classic Charleston, where I curate and lead demonstrations, dinners, and conversations that connect Southern foodways to broader national and global conversations.

A lot of my work happens through dinners, pop-ups, and public programs across Charleston and beyond. I’ve produced and collaborated on events at Stems & Skins, Kultura, Coterie, The Mills House and other independent spaces, often working with other chefs, farmers, and artisans. These events are grounded in seasonal ingredients, whole-animal cookery, and regional food traditions, and they consistently bring together engaged audiences and sell out.

My brand and institutional work spans both national and local partnerships. I’ve worked with Smithey Ironware, Lillie’s of Charleston, Grass Roots Farmers Co-Op, the Gullah Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor, the Museum of Food and Drink, and the Avery Research Center, among others. My work also includes national campaigns, such as a Black History Month collaboration with Uber Eats and Postmates, as well as programming and events with Angel’s Envy. Across these collaborations, I’ve developed recipes, led public-facing programming, and contributed to campaigns that have reached national audiences through both digital and in-person platforms.

I’m a member of Les Dames d’Escoffier International and a recipient of the organization’s Legacy Award.

I’m also the author of the forthcoming cookbook From the Roota to the Toota (4 Color Books, 2027), which explores whole-animal cookery and Black Southern food traditions through research, storytelling, and recipes.

My work has been featured on National Geographic and Disney+’s World of Flavor with Big Moe Cason and on PBS’s Finding Edna Lewis, where I engage with the legacy of Southern cooks and the ways those traditions continue today.

I have two very jokey, high-energy, smart, and pretty dogs (Luna Bear and Haley Foxx), and a whole lot of god-children. I’m an advocate for properly cooked rice and grits, and Project Pat is in my top five artists of all time.

That’s all I got for now I guess.

Y’all boy hol’ em,

Amethyst