Decatur, GA — Chai Pani won the James Beard Foundation’s 2022 Outstanding Restaurant Award.

The James Beard Foundation presented the award on June 13. The restaurant has a location in Decatur, but its flagship location is in Asheville, N.C.

The Outstanding Restaurant Award goes to “a restaurant that demonstrates consistent excellence in food, atmosphere, hospitality, and operations while contributing positively to its broader community,” a press release from the company says.

The executive chef of Chai Pani is Meherwan Irani and his wife, Molly, is the restaurant’s hospitality director and co-owner.

A spokesperson for the company told Decaturish, “Needless to say, we’re losing our minds.”

“The award went to Chai Pani’s flagship location in Asheville but we definitely share it with our Decatur team, guests and the whole Chai Pani Restaurant Group family across the South’s most essential culinary cities,” the press release says. “Our culinary director Daniel Peach who has been with Chai Pani from Day One and is based in Decatur was with us [at the awards ceremony].”

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