
WILMINGTON — The culinary world’s premier awards have announced contenders for 2025 and among the list of Best Chefs Southeast are two well-known names behind a Third and Castle street eatery.
READ MORE: Raleigh restaurateur to bring Spanish-Italian flavors of New Orleans to Olivero
ALSO: In photos: Olivero now open at Third and Castle streets
Olivero chefs Sunny Gerhart and Lauren Krall-Ivey are among 20 nominees in the category, revealed Wednesday by the James Beard Foundation.
“We certainly could not be in this situation without such an incredible, hardworking and dedicated team to support our vision,” Gerhart said in a statement. “Lauren is such a talented chef, individual, and most importantly, one of my closest and dearest friends.”
Krall-Ivey added she was proud to be nominated alongside Gerhart as well.
“Working with my longtime friend as partners in the restaurant has been both creatively rewarding and incredibly fun,” she said. “I am proud not only of the dishes we’ve developed at Olivero, but the culture in our kitchen, the passion of our staff, and the support from the Wilmington community.”
Gerhart is no stranger to the James Beard Foundation. He was a Best Chef Southeast semifinalist in 2022; the chef also owns and operates a restaurant in Raleigh, St. Roch Fine Oysters & Bar.
He met Krall-Ivey after they worked together for Ashley Christensen, behind Raleigh eateries like Poole’s Diner and Death and Taxes. Christensen won James Beard Outstanding Chef in 2019 and Best Chef in 2014 but has been a semifinalist in various categories multiple times as well.
“It’s always rewarding to be involved at the very beginning of a restaurant project, and even more so with Sunny, for whom I have so much respect,” Krall-Ivey told PCD when Olivero opened in 2023.
Gerhart paired up on his Wilmington restaurant with developer James Goodnight, who owns the 1940s building and has a passion for historic renovation. The space, formerly a dry-cleaning business, hadn’t been occupied in a decade or more. Gerhart and Goodnight renovated it into a Spanish-New Orleans-Italian-style restaurant that has garnered popularity in the Port City since opening.
Gerhart and Krall-Ivey curated a menu that changes seasonally, with homemade pastas and wood-fired meats over a hand-cranked Argentinian-inspired grill, often used by Michelin-starred chefs worldwide. Unexpected appetizers, salads and desserts, as well as a thoughtful bar program, round out the experience in an eclectically decorated 2,500-square-foot space, roughly seating 65 diners.
The inspiration for Olivero’s bevy of flavors was born of Gerhart’s family lineage. Pictures of his relatives hang on the walls throughout the eatery — his grandfather, Jose Olivero, a Spanish sailor who settled in the Big Easy after traveling from Seville, Spain, married into an Italian family.
Gerhart and Krall-Ivey are the only names recognized in Wilmington for the 2025 James Beard Awards. Last year, Dean Neff (owner of Seabird, who also worked with Goodnight in renovating his Front and Market street eatery) made it to the final round of Outstanding Chef nationwide.
Previously, Neff has been a contender for Best Chef Southeast, along with Catch’s Keith Rhodes. Gerhart and Ivey-Krall are joined by five more North Carolina nominees in the category this year:
- Sam Diminich, Restaurant Constance, Charlotte, NC
- Silver Iocovozzi, Neng Jr.’s, Asheville, NC
- Chayil Johnson, Community Matters Cafe, Charlotte, NC
- Christopher Prieto, Prime Barbecue, Knightsdale, NC
- Ashleigh Shanti, Good Hot Fish, Asheville, NC
Nine other Tar Heel State businesses and people also are nominated in various categories, including:
- Outstanding Restaurateur: Scott Crawford, Crawford Hospitality (Crawford and Son, Brodeto, Jolie, and others), Raleigh, NC
- Outstanding Chef: William Dissen, The Market Place, Asheville, NC; and Ricky Moore, Saltbox Seafood Joint, Durham, NC;
- Emerging Chef: Bhavin Chhatwani, Tamasha Modern Indian, Raleigh, NC
- Best New Restaurant: Figulina, Raleigh, NC
- Outstanding Pastry Chef or Baker: April Franqueza, The Dining Room at High Hampton, Cashiers, NC
- Outstanding Wine and Other Beverages Program: Leo’s House of Thirst, Asheville, NC
- Best New Bar: The Bar Beej, Durham, NC
- Outstanding Professional in Cocktail Service: Colleen Hughes, Supperland, Charlotte, NC
“I could not be more thrilled and honored to be included in such an amazing list of talented folks in the hospitality industry,” Gerhart added. “We have been blessed to have an enormous amount of support from our community in Wilmington and are excited about being a part of such a growing and fantastic hospitality scene.”
Next in the 2025 James Beard Awards process, judges visit the restaurants unannounced and dwindle down the semifinalists list as informed by their dining experiences.
On April 2, all finalists will be announced, with winners crowned at the ceremony on Monday, June 16, held at the Lyric Opera of Chicago.
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