In 2016, Crawford opened his first restaurant, Crawford & Son, gaining immediate accolades as the best new restaurant in the area. In a nod to the importance of family, this casual neighborhood eatery is named after Crawford’s son. Crawford wows diners with honest, straightforward food, focusing on the quality of ingredients. Since it’s next to sister restaurant Jolie, you could start with charcuterie and fromage at the bistro, and then settle into Crawford & Son for grilled short ribs and apple spice cake.

Crawford’s commitment to hospitality has been evident from the start, landing him as a James Beard Award finalist for outstanding hospitality in 2024. […] We don’t expect this award-winning chef to hang up his apron anytime soon. Crawford plans to keep serving up Southern hospitality, one delicious dish at a time.

“I’m just paying forward the way I’ve been treated and embraced by this city,” Crawford concluded.

Throughout his nearly three-decade career as a celebrated chef, Scott Crawford has always trusted his gut.

This hasn’t just applied to the flavors and cuisine he serves at his fleet of Crawford Hospitality restaurants; it expands to the opportunities and chances he has taken as an entrepreneur.

For example, Joseph makes an orgeat using Tiger Chai tea from Tin Roof Teas, oat milk and sugar at Crawford Brothers Steakhouse. He uses the creamy housemade orgeat in the restaurant’s “Port of Spain” cocktail, which also features mezcal, cachaça and Angostura bitters. His team uses oat milk for most of their orgeats due to nut allergy concerns, but the result still tastes similar to nut-based versions.

When diners talk about Raleigh’s most beloved restaurants—like Crawford and Son, Jolie or Brodeto—they often associate them with the acclaimed Chef Scott Crawford. But behind the scenes, another name plays a vital role in shaping the flavors and philosophies of the Crawford Hospitality group: Conor Delaney.

We Asked 16 Bartenders: What’s the Best Gin for Mixing Classic Cocktails? – “It’s hard not to pick Xoriguer Mahón Gin for all classic needs. This gin hails from the island of Menorca, Spain, and is incredibly singular […] This gin flexes with classic cocktails of all kinds, especially drinks like a Last Word, Bees Knees, or a classic Martini. Lastly, this may make the best Gin and Tonic you ever had.” —Jordan Joseph, beverage director, Crawford and Son/Jolie,/Sous Terre, Raleigh, N.C.

If you remember the old dive bar that once lived where Sous Terre now exists, forget everything you know. Crawford Hospitality—chef Scott Crawford’s hospitality group that now includes Crawford and Son, Jolie, Brodeto, Crawford Brothers Steakhouse—has transformed it into a subterranean lounge with warm oak, leathered stone, and just the right amount of moody lighting.

2025 James Beard Awards: Restaurant and Chef Semifinalists – Outstanding Restaurateur – A restaurateur who uses their establishment(s) as a vehicle for building community, demonstrates creativity in entrepreneurship, and integrity in restaurant operations. – Scott Crawford, Crawford Hospitality (Crawford and Son, Brodeto, Jolie, and others), Raleigh, NC

The Adriatica, created by Jordan Joseph, beverage director of Brodeto’s parent company Crawford Hospitality, brings grilled complexity to the glass. Built on a base of Uncle Val’s gin, it layers the citrusy perfume of fire-charred Meyer lemons with fresh basil and a subtle drizzle of Sicilian olive oil. “This drink is all about simplicity and technique,” says Joseph. “It’s a great example of what ‘less is more’ is all about.”

So far, 2024 has been a pretty great year. In March, we opened Brodeto, and in June, the Crawford and Son team and I attended the James Beard Awards as finalists for the category of Outstanding Hospitality.

But most importantly, I’m celebrating 20 years sober. A lot of people see my success today and have no idea the depths of darkness that I reached two decades ago. Real talk: most people don’t make it back from where I was. And that’s why I’m sharing my story. For anyone out there who is suffering from addiction: there is a path to peace and happiness.

Crawford needs little introduction in Raleigh, or in many regional or national culinary circles. His surname adorns several of his restaurants, both established and forthcoming—think Crawford and Son, Crawford Cookshop, Crawford Brothers Steakhouse and Crawford’s Genuine. Not to mention there’s Jolie, subterranean Sous Terre and Adriatic-inspired Brodeto.

These days he’s an affable statesman of North Carolina’s food scene, quick to smile and capable of cultivating a team (at Crawford and Son) that made it to the finalist round in the latest James Beard Awards for hospitality.

But before any of that—before his kids were born and before the fame—a phone call from his brother made it all possible.