Vivian Howard Taps Charleston Chefs for Hand Pie Collaboration

It’s no doubt that award-winning chef/author/television host Vivian Howard has plenty of star appeal on her own, but now she’s pulling in some of Charleston’s big names to bring a few new flavors to her downtown cafe Handy & Hot. Each local chef will put their spin on Howard’s signature hand pie in a year-long series of guests.

Starting Friday, March 12, the menu will feature a creation from Jackrabbit Filly chef Shuai Wang. His unique hand pie is filled with Szechuan ground pork, Sea Island red peas, and smoked cheddar. He calls it “a Frankenstein of a pizza roll.”

Other chefs in the series include BJ Dennis (culinary director of Lowcountry Fresh Market & Cafe in Bluffton, South Carolina), Juan Cassalet (Malagon), Jill Mathias (Chez Nous), Jacques Larson (the Obstinate Daughter and Wild Olive), and Rodney Scott (Rodney Scott’s BBQ).

Howard says she wanted to start this project because “... the pandemic pushed restaurants into little pods of survival making it really hard to feel as if we are part of something bigger. So Handy & Hot’s hand pie collaboration is our effort to reach across social distancing and say, ‘We see you, we respect you and we love your food.’”

• Famed North Carolina Chef Vivian Howard Opens Cafe in Charleston [ECAR]