Congratulations to Chapel Hill’s Andrea Reusing for being named “ Best Chef in the Southeast ” by the James Beard Foundation tonight. This comes as no surprise, though, after having dined at her restaurant, The Lantern .

Blending Asian flavors with local ingredients, The Lantern wows thru every course. When we went we started with some fabulous pork and chive dumplings, then moved on to a shrimp soup that was fantastic. The entrée was the best though. I got a fish that was similar to the currently offered fried fish (however it was not fried, but was cooked with chilies, lime, garlic, etc). IIRC my wife got some Korean BBQ taco kind of dish that had a ton of spinach and two clever sauces. We finished with a phenomenal chocolate cake. I am neither a “seafood guy” nor a “dessert guy”, and these two courses blew me away.

If you haven’t made it over to The Lantern, I obviously suggest doing so. It is located on Franklin Street, about 100 yards west (to the right) of 411 West.