Two years since arriving at Regina’s, and one year since becoming partner with Lisa Wagner, chef Kat Fitzgerald is having fun with food.

On June 1st, Lisa Wagner and chef Kat Fitzgerald celebrated two anniversaries – two years since Regina’s opened in West Asheville and one year since Fitzgerald added co-owner to her title. The duo is frank about the process – it’s been a rocky road, but they’ve had each other’s back. “Lisa and I have really fought for this place together. There were a lot of doubts, but that’s kind of the fuel that kept us going.”

Wagner adds, “The sisters are making all the decisions and putting that female energy to work. The ladies get things done.”

Fitzgerald came to Asheville from Atlanta in 2023 with a short-term plan. My dad and I had a smoked meat business together and I wanted to get better,” she says. “Elliott (Moss) was opening Regina’s and I wanted to learn from the best. I thought I’d get a job in the kitchen, get on the smoker, really hone in my skills for a year, go home and get back with my dad. We were already building our third smoker.”

Moss had a rock-solid reputation as a pit master extraordinaire, built in Asheville based on his seven years co-ownership of Buxton Hall Barbecue. But he always dreamed of having a diner-like restaurant and when the former Happy Hill became available, he rounded up investors – including Wagner – and opened to great fanfare on June 1, 2023. Six weeks later, he headed back home to Florence, SC.

The remaining partners asked Fitzgerald if she would take over the kitchen. That was not part of the plan. “I had never cooked professionally in a restaurant,” she admits. “I owned a restaurant in Atlanta with my then-husband, who was a chef, in a funky area in Avondale Estates. Rising Son was a brunch place. We built the menu together; he was the chef, and I did everything else.”

Now she was the chef, counting on the ownership team to do everything else. The first year was tough, a cauldron of internal disputes, gossip and speculation, frequent changes in service models and direction, all while trying to build a business on shaky financial footing.  “It was not the most straightforward path,” Wagner understates.

“That year was not a representation of who I am,” explains Fitzgerald. “It was about making it through, getting them by, but I wanted to push myself further. A year in, I told Lisa I needed to grow, I needed to do my own thing.”

Instead, Wagner proposed they disentangle from the original investors and become a two-woman team. Some changes were immediate – installing a wall of portraits honoring the women who shaped the owners’ lives; added dinner service and Golden Girl-ed the dog-friendly patio dining area to resemble “Your Florida grandma’s pool patio minus the pool,” Wagner jokes.

The menu continued to evolve as Fitzgerald gained confidence, built up her staff and mined her memories and imagination for dishes.  For example, the pork loin hash at brunch (served Wed.-Sun. 9am -3pm) “After church on Sundays I’d go to Waffle House with my grandfather and we always had the scattered, smothered and covered. The pork loin hash is kind of my tribute to him.”

The dinner menu (Thurs. – Sun. 5pm – 9pm.) is where she plays, frequently changing the components on foundational proteins, pulling herbs and produce from her own garden (“I put in 60 heirloom tomato plants this spring!”) and exploring her interest in fish through Fish Night Sundays. “I always want to push myself further, I love fish and love working with fish. It’s symbolic and dynamic. We will always have a whole fish of some kind on Sunday nights, with different preparations.”

Though the fan base she has built at Regina’s would disagree, Fitzgerald eschews the title of chef. “I’m a glorified line cook who enjoys the romanticism of food and all things food. I have a long way to go, but slowly and organically, I’m adding more to my plate week by week. My growth has been strong and steady, and I am confident in my food.”

More on Regina’s Westside

— Written by Kay West

Photos:
First photo: Chef Kat Fitzgerald and Owner Lisa Wagner by Jess Hopkins
Second photo:  Fish Sunday courtesy of Regina’s