Local Celebrity Chef, Sera Cuni, Wins 2023 Undeniably Dairy Award for Savory Dish
Sera Cuni, local celebrity chef and owner of Cafe Root Cellar in Pittsboro and Root Cellar Cafe & Catering in Chapel Hill, was presented the 2023 Undeniably Dairy Award for Savory Dish at the North Carolina Restaurant and Lodging Association’s Chef Showdown Grand Finale on Aug. 14. Sponsored by the Dairy Alliance, this new award was presented to competing chefs and bartenders who best showcased the use of North Carolina dairy products in their savory dishes, desserts, cocktails and mocktails.
Cuni’s winning dish “Summer in Sicily Chatham Style,” featured seared scallops, roasted corn custard, corn and smoked ham hock arancini, blackberry poblano drizzle, pickled shallots, micros, and crispy shallots. Cuni’s dishes throughout the rounds of competition featured dairy products from Ran-Lew Dairy, Chapel Hill Creamery, and Homeland Dairy.
A resident of Pittsboro, Cuni celebrates Chatham County farmers weekly at Cafe Root Cellar with rotating menus that highlight seasonally grown vegetables and fruits as well as North Carolina produced meats and dairy.
Chef Sera Cuni’s Winning Dish
Cuni created and served 400 small plates of Summer in Sicily Chatham Style.
Ingredients: seared scallops, roasted corn custard, corn and smoked ham hock arancini, blackberry poblano drizzle, pickled shallots, micros, and crispy shallots.
The NCRLA Chef Competition is North Carolina’s premiere culinary and mixology competition. This annual event features competitors who showcased North Carolina proteins, produce and products in their dishes, cocktails, and mocktails. The 2023 preliminary rounds of this culinary competition featured 76 North Carolina chefs and pastry chefs.
About Chef Sera Cuni
Sera Cuni is the chef and owner of two North Carolina restaurants: Root Cellar Cafe & Catering in Chapel Hill and a sister spin-off, Cafe Root Cellar in Pittsboro. Classically trained in the culinary arts, Chef Sera launched her career in her home state of Connecticut, where she grew up surrounded by a family of cooks who embraced their Italian and Czech foodie traditions. Her early kitchen experiences, including in restaurants Main and Hopewell, Americus on the Wharf, and Pastis, all in Connecticut, helped to inform and influence the cuisine she loves to cook today – creative and flavorful dishes that reflect the vast diversity of foods across the Midwestern and Southern United States. A founding member of the North Carolina Chapter of Les Dames d’Escoffier and a selected member of Sterling Silver’s Signature Chefs, Chef Sera devotes her free time to supporting other women culinary entrepreneurs and working with nonprofits to address food insecurity in North Carolina. An avid competitor, Chef Sera has appeared on the Food Network’s Guy’s Grocery Games and Supermarket Stakeout. In May 2023, Chef Sera was announced as the winning chef on Supermarket Stakeout, taking home a grand prize of $10,000. Connect with Chef Sera Cuni on Instagram.