217: Tandy Wilson, City House (Nashville, TN)

Nashville is a true Southern culinary scene with some seriously good food, and the chef I first associated with this pop star of a city was Tandy Wilson of City House, a restaurant whose screened in porch is as welcoming as the breezes it gets on a summer day. Wilson's focus on growing relationships with local farmers to build his Italian menus was not the norm when his restaurant began, but now chefs all over the region are following in his footsteps doing just that. This Nashville native has been nominated for 8 James Beard Best Chef: Southeast awards and finally won on his 8th, and yet, for him, these days, the cooking isn't so much about star turns on event circuits as it is the daily practice of it, from sourcing to prep, to good old fashioned hard work.