Ashley Christensen facts for kids

Ashley Christensen is a famous American chef and restaurateur. She also writes cookbooks and is a culinary celebrity. She lives and works in Raleigh, North Carolina. Ashley is the chef and owner of AC Restaurants. This company runs several popular restaurants, including Poole's Diner and Beasley's Chicken + Honey. She has won the James Beard Foundation Award twice. Many people say she helped make Raleigh a well-known place for great food.

Early Life and Education

Ashley Christensen was born in Greensboro, North Carolina. She went to North Carolina State University. While in college, she started cooking for her friends and family. This was the beginning of her journey into the world of food.

Her Amazing Career in Food

Ashley Christensen lives and works in Raleigh, North Carolina. She got her first job in a restaurant when she was 21 years old. Since then, she has worked hard to build a strong community in Raleigh. She does this through her food, charity work, and by helping downtown Raleigh grow.

Her work has been noticed by many national magazines. These include Bon Appétit and The New York Times. She has also appeared on TV shows. You might have seen her on Food Network's Iron Chef America.

Ashley's Popular Restaurants

Ashley Christensen is the main chef and owner of AC Restaurants. This company manages several unique eating spots. In 2007, she opened Poole's Diner. It was named after one of the first businesses in that building. It was also one of the first restaurants in downtown Raleigh.

In 2011, she opened two more places. These were Beasley's Chicken + Honey and Fox Liquor Bar. They are in a building that used to be a grocery store in the 1940s.

In 2015, AC Restaurants launched Death & Taxes. This restaurant focuses on cooking with wood-fire. It uses fresh ingredients from the Southern United States. They also opened Bridge Club. This is a space for private events and cooking classes. In 2019, she opened Poole'side Pies. This restaurant serves her special Neapolitan-style pizza. It is right next door to Poole's Diner. In 2021, she helped start BB's Crispy Chicken. This is a fast-casual restaurant that serves fried chicken sandwiches.

Cookbooks by Ashley

Ashley Christensen has written two cookbooks. Her first book is called Poole's: Recipes and Stories from a Modern Diner. It came out in 2016. Her second book is It's Always Freezer Season. She wrote this book with her wife, Kaitlyn Goalen, in 2021.

Awards and Special Recognitions

Ashley Christensen has received many important awards for her cooking.

• 2014: Won the James Beard Foundation Award for Best Chef in the Southeast.
• 2016: Death & Taxes was a finalist for the James Beard Foundation Award for Best New Restaurant.
• 2016: Food & Wine magazine named Death & Taxes one of the Restaurants of the Year.
• 2017: Eater website named her the Best Chef in the Nation.
• 2018: Was a finalist for the James Beard Foundation Award for Outstanding Chef.
• 2019: Won the James Beard Foundation Award for Outstanding Chef.
• 2021: Received an honorary doctorate degree from North Carolina State University.

Her Life and Community Work

In 2019, Ashley Christensen married Kaitlyn Goalen.

Ashley is very involved in her community. She is on the board of the Frankie Lemmon Foundation. She also helps lead their big yearly fundraiser, the Triangle Wine Experience. In 2020, she worked with this foundation to create a special fund. This fund helped restaurant workers who were affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

She also serves on the board for the Dix Park Conservancy. This group helps develop a large park in Raleigh. Ashley is also on the board of Shepherd's Table Soup Kitchen. This kitchen provides hundreds of meals every day to people in downtown Raleigh who need food. She is an active member of the Southern Foodways Alliance. She also started an event called Stir the Pot. For this event, she invites other chefs to Raleigh. They raise money for the Southern Foodways Alliance's projects.