Chef Harrison Keevil of Brookville Restaurant - Biography

Chef Harrison Keevil is a late bloomer when it comes to culinary profession. Growing up on farms in Goochland County, Virginia, where food had been a big part of, Keevil had always known his destiny was cooking in front of the stove, but he was too hesitant to pull the trigger. Instead, he studied foreign affairs at University of Virginia, and travelled to London to work as a research assistant for the Parliament. The nightmarish life in a 4x4 cubicle reminded him what it felt like when he was 12 years old and perfected family-recipe roasted chicken for the first time–he harkened back that passion and flew back to the States to pursue his dreams: opening his own restaurant.

Keevil’s first stop was the French Culinary Institute in New York. After learning his craft at the FCI, he earned his stripes working for top-tier restaurants like Loreley and L’Ecole. He then jumped to the West Coast, honing his skills with Chefs Mitchell and Steven Rosenthal at their critics’ pick Town Hall in San Francisco. Then he returned to England and staged at Heston Blumenthal’s three-Michelin-starred The Fat Duck, which cemented his passion for fresh, high-quality ingredients.

Back to Charlottesville, Virginia, he landed a job in the kitchen of StarChefs.com 2010 Rising Stars Chef Dean Maupin at The Clifton Inn, where he met his future wife, Jennifer. In 2010, Keevil and his then-fiancée opened Brookville Restaurant in the historic strip of C’Ville, where he emphasizes on local farm-fresh bounty that is grown and raised within the 100 miles radius. His seasonally inspired menu which changes nightly is a combination of his Southern background, penchant for British culture, and whatever comes up at the market in the morning.