Adam Evans, Automatic Seafood & Oysters (Birmingham, AL)

After a week of thinking about cooking turkey and a day of eating it, you might want to consider something else, so come with me to the Gulf of Mexico, where the sand is white and the seafood is plenty. This is the source of inspiration and menu items for Adam Evans, chef and co-owner, along with his wife Suzanne, of Automatic Seafood & Oysters in Birmingham, AL. Housed in a former mid-century warehouse, a table here has been one of the hottest in town since the restaurant opened in 2019. Adam started his career in Fairhope at The Grand Hotel, spent time cooking in some of the best kitchens in New Orleans, has worked as the executive chef of private events for Tom Colicchio's team at Craft in NYC, and was the opening chef of The Optimist in Atlanta for Ford Fry in 2012. Automatic Seafood & Oysters was a James Beard Foundation finalist for Best New Restaurant in 2020, and here he brings his passion for seafood back to his home state of Alabama.