“Top Chef” star Carla Hall is opening a brand-new Southern fried chicken joint in Washington, D.C., celebrating the “culinary matriarch” in her family.
On Saturday, March 14, the 61-year-old runway model turned celebrity chef is preparing to launch Bumblebirds, a casual fried chicken joint and Southern-style cocktail bar, Washingtonian magazine reported.
The fast-casual eatery, which she has partnered with Sunnyside Restaurant Group (Good Stuff Eatery, Santa Rosa Taqueria, We The Pizza) to open, is meant to be a love letter to D.C. and the South, and features recipes and decor inspired by Hall’s own grandmother, according to People magazine.
“She was the culinary matriarch of my family, and I feel like I hold that torch now,” she told the outlet. “So whenever I can make something or do something, and it reminds her of my grandmother, it is like I’m connecting to her spirit.”
A part of the decor involves a custom mural and handcrafted paper yo-yo quilts by Hall.
“I thought I had lost my grandmother’s quilt after 20 years,” she recalled. “It was lost for 20 years, and I found it in 2021. And before I found it, I had decided to recreate it with paper.”
Hall ended up creating a 9-by-3-foot art installation.
“It’s more than just showcasing a piece of art; it’s about showing other sides of my creativity,” she said, adding, “And also, quilts are about community and bringing people together.”
Hall became a household name in 2009 when she starred on season 5 of “Top Chef, finishing as a finalist, and has remained a fan favorite. Bumblebirds will be Hall’s first restaurant in nearly 10 years. Her last was Carla Hall’s Southern Kitchen in Brooklyn, New York.
“Miracles do happen,” she told Eater. “I never thought I’d open [another] place, but it was the perfect storm.”
