What’s happening?
While Magdalena is a Black-owned restaurant, it’s yet to have a Black executive chef—until now. Scott Bacon, 31, is taking the helm of the premier fine dining restaurant, located inside of the luxurious Ivy Hotel in Mount Vernon.
“I’m striving to make it my narrative and style,” Bacon told the Baltimore Sun, adding that he wants guests to experience Southern culture through his dishes like Gulf shrimp and Carolina yellow rice grits.
Why is this a big deal?
Black chefs are a rarity in America, and they are often overlooked in popular food award competitions. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, a mere 14.7% of chefs and head cooks in the U.S. were Black in 2020. That’s about two percentage points higher than the number of Black people in the entire U.S. workforce, the Baltimore Sun points out.
Anything else I should know?
If you want to treat the Bloc By Block team to dinner at Magdalena, we’re all in! Joking, check it out and let us know what you think.
And read more about Chef Bacon’s career here.
