Metro Roundup: Birmingham chef named best in the South

Birmingham chef Adam Evans of Automatic Seafood & Oysters recently was named the best chef of the South by the James Beard Foundation.

The award comes just three years after he and his wife, Suzanne Humphries Evans, opened the restaurant in 2019.

The restaurant, named for the building’s past life as an automatic sprinkler manufacturing facility, is located in Birmingham's Lakeview neighborhood. Working directly with local vendors, markets and fisheries, Evans’ menu features simple seafood dishes, primarily sourced from the Gulf. The space at Automatic lends itself to a coastal setting — not speaking directly to one specific body of water or region.

Previously, the Muscle Shoals native made his mark on Atlanta’s culinary landscape through his signature seafood dishes at The Optimist. In 2015, Evans opened Atlanta’s Brezza Cucina with chef Jonathan Waxman, and in 2017 he came to Birmingham with the goal of opening his dream restaurant with his wife, interior designer Suzanne Humphries Evans.

– Submitted by Halle Lipov, Sprouthouse Agency.