Executive Chef and Co-Founder, Grey Spaces; Savannah, GA

Mashama Bailey is the award-winning executive chef and co-founder of Grey Spaces, the hospitality group behind restaurants such as the critically acclaimed The Grey, and its all-day counterpart The Grey Market in Savannah. In 2022, she and Grey Spaces co-founder/business partner Johno Morisano opened two new restaurants, the Diner Bar and The Grey Market - Austin, that showcase the Grey Spaces’ distinct take on Port City Southern fare in the new hotel Thompson in Austin. Born in the Bronx and raised in Queens with maternal roots from Waynesboro, Georgia, Mashama attended grammar school in Savannah. She first learned to cook at the hands of the women in her family and her formal education includes the Institute of Culinary Education (ICE) in New York City as well as LaVarenne in Burgundy, France. Prior to The Grey, Mashama’s career includes a dozen years cooking throughout New York City, the last four of which were at Prune on Manhattan’s Lower East Side under the tutelage of Gabrielle Hamilton. In 2019 and with the premier of Netflix’s Chef’s Table Season 6, Mashama became the first African American chef to star on that show. Together with Morisano, Mashama co-wrote Black, White and The Grey (Ten Speed Press/Penguin Random House) which explores the business partners’ challenges navigating race, class, and culture while building businesses, relationships, and community in the South. The 2022 James Beard Outstanding Chef and 2019 James Beard Best Chef: Southeast, Mashama is the chairwoman of the Edna Lewis Foundation, whose mission is to honor and extend the legacy of Edna Lewis by creating opportunities for African Americans in the fields of cooking, agriculture, food studies, and storytelling. @mashamabailey 

Photo credit: Nydia Blas