Events

This fall, Sean Brock is marking the first anniversary of darling in West Hollywood with Southern Accents at darling by Sean Brock, Presented by Resy, a special dinner series bringing four of the South’s most celebrated chefs to Los Angeles. Mike Lata, James London, Frank Stitt and Mashama Bailey will each join Sean for a one-night-only dinner, telling their own story of the American South through the ingredients and bounty of Southern California. The idea grew out of Sean’s experience cooking in LA and discovering how differently Southern food can express itself here.

“Last winter, we discovered something awesome: Los Angeles is hungry for the flavors and stories of the American South,” says Sean. “I’ve spent my career studying this cuisine, and it’s been so fun introducing it to a new audience out here. Taking a dish I learned in South Carolina and building it with produce from the Santa Monica Farmers Market, with fish pulled from the waters nearby, has reignited something in me. I get to be an ambassador for these flavors again, in a place that’s never tasted them quite this way.”

That discovery led him to invite four chefs who have each shaped Southern cooking in very different ways:

September 29 — Mike Lata
Mike Lata is one of the leading voices in Lowcountry cuisine and a James Beard Award-winning chef based in Charleston, South Carolina. His cooking emphasizes seasonal ingredients, sustainable seafood, and close relationships with local farmers and fishermen. Lata has helped define Charleston’s modern culinary identity while championing responsible sourcing. He is the chef and co-owner of FIG (Food Is Good) and The Ordinary, two of Charleston’s most celebrated restaurants.

October 30 — James London
James London is an acclaimed chef recognized for blending Southern traditions with global influences and a deep respect for seasonal ingredients. A James Beard Award finalist, London is known for creating thoughtful, ingredient-driven menus that celebrate the richness of Southern foodways. He is the chef and owner of Chubby Fish in Charleston, South Carolina, one of the nation’s most acclaimed seafood restaurants. Chubby Fish has been recognized by the James Beard Foundation, The New York Times, and North America’s 50 Best Restaurants for its ingredient-driven approach to sustainable seafood and hospitality.

November 17 — Frank Stitt
Often referred to as the “Dean of Southern Cuisine,” Frank Stitt is widely credited with elevating Southern cooking into the national fine dining conversation. A James Beard Award-winning chef, he pioneered a farm-to-table approach in the South decades before it became commonplace. Stitt is the chef and owner of Highlands Bar & Grill, Bottega Restaurant, and Chez Fonfon in Birmingham, Alabama, restaurants that have become landmarks of Southern hospitality and cuisine.

December 10 — Mashama Bailey
Mashama Bailey’s distinctive approach to Port City Southern cuisine reshapes the narrative around Southern cooking, centering Afro-Atlantic histories, cultures, and peoples in the story of America’s foodways. Named North America’s Best Female Chef and one of Time Magazine’s 100 Most Influential People in 2026, Mashama is the Executive Chef and Co-Founder of Grey Spaces hospitality, and its signature properties, The Grey, Savannah, GA, and L’Arrêt by The Grey, Paris.

Each dinner will be a true collaboration between Sean and the visiting chef, beginning with an intimate cocktail hour in the darling lounge before moving into the dining room for a multicourse menu created together for the occasion. The menus will bring each chef’s distinct perspective on Southern cooking into conversation with Sean’s, all through the lens of Southern California’s exceptional seasonal ingredients.

Reservations for the 9/29 Mike Lata collaboration dinner are available on Resy.

Reservations for the remaining dates (James London, Frank Stitt and Mashama Bailey) will be available to book on September 16 at  9 a.m. PT) on Resy.