DALLAS
Field-to-table and zero-waste cooking isn’t a philosophy at Roots Southern Table, it’s just how chef Tiffany Derry ate when she was growing up in east Texas. It was the kind of household where the kitchen table was always in use and guests were always made to feel welcome with way too much fresh home-cooked food. That sensibility lives on at her James Beard Award-nominated Dallas restaurant, where food and hospitality are so interconnected, they’re really the same thing. The menu offers food from both her “down home roots” and, for less traditional fare, the chef’s “modern roots,” but no matter where you land, expect to see plenty of Steen’s cane vinegar and duck fat, which is used to cook everything from dirty rice to yams and, best of all, her legendary fried chicken.
INCLUDED IN THE FEAST
Roots Southern Table
TIFFANY DERRY
As the official spokesperson for the James Beard Foundation’s sustainability efforts, chef Tiffany Derry works on campaigns that encourage home cooks to adopt low-waste practices and, at the same time, lobbies politicians for legislative change when it comes to sustainable and healthy food policies. Some of her work on that front takes inspiration from her culinary training at the Art Institute of Houston and her experience learning about food cultures in kitchens around the world but, the true foundation of this Top Chef fan favorite’s work is a childhood spent making preserves and canning with her grandmother. It’s not just about doing better for the planet, it’s also about good eating, as anyone who’s ever enjoyed the leftover “potlikker” after a supper of greens and beans knows all too well.
JAMES BEARD FOUNDATION
2022 Best New Restaurant Finalist
JAMES BEARD FOUNDATION
2022 Best Chef: Texas Finalist
WHY WE LOVE IT
In addition to the over-the-top southern fare, it’s hard not to love the fact that chef Derry and her business partner, Tom Foley, are active in the fight to build healthier and more sustainable career options for people of color and to improve food access and equity. The more people gathering around the table, the better it is for everyone.
