i. Biography
David Bancroft has been chef and owner of Acre in Auburn, Alabama, since 2013, and that restaurant has become the clearest expression of his cooking: sustainable ingredients, local harvests, and a menu shaped by what the land gives and the season allows. Southern food, in Bancroft’s hands, is treated as a living set of practices rather than a fixed archive. He has said, “Our goal is to interpret the complex, traditional tastes of the Deep South in a totally fresh and modern way.”
The Path
Early kitchen work at Fraternity at Auburn University in Auburn, Alabama, and later as head chef at Amsterdam Café gave David Bancroft two different kinds of discipline: service-level precision and the demands of leadership. Those roles built the working base for a career that would stay anchored in Auburn while expanding in scope. The progression is clear in the record: from kitchen steward to head chef, then to chef and owner of Acre (since 2013) and chef and owner of Bow & Arrow (since 2018), with both restaurants keeping Auburn at the center of his professional life.
The Work Today
Since 2013, Bancroft has led Acre as chef and owner, and that pairing remains the defining fact of the work: a restaurant in Auburn, Alabama, United States built around sustainable ingredients and local harvests. The effect is straightforward rather than ornamental. Acre reads as a kitchen in conversation with place, where the menu is shaped by the setting instead of imposed on it. In 2018, he added Bow & Arrow in the same city, again as chef and owner. That second restaurant extends the work without changing its base. Together, Acre and Bow & Arrow show a career that has grown by addition, not drift. Bancroft’s position on scale is equally plain in his own words: “My goals and vision for the future is not based on money-making opportunities or the next up and coming chain concepts.”
Signature
Buckwheat Noodle "Take-Out" with Nduja Vinaigrette & the Acre Garden is the signature dish, and the title itself makes the method legible. It signals a dish that is both accessible and tightly considered, with the Acre Garden built into the name as part of the point.
In Their Words “My goals and vision for the future is not based on money-making opportunities or the next up and coming chain concepts.” “I love the fact that the entire South is now recognizing and celebrating the true “melting pot” that is “The South.”
Acclaim
James Beard Foundation Award semifinalist, Best Chef: South (2016), and Iron Chef Showdown winner (2017) are the honors attached to Bancroft’s name. Taken together, they place his work in two lanes at once: technical command and a regional point of view translated with enough clarity to register beyond Auburn.
Profile updated July 2026
FAQ
Asked of David
What is David Bancroft's current role?
As of 2026, David Bancroft is Chef and Owner.
Where did David Bancroft work before?
David Bancroft's earlier career included Fraternity at Auburn University and Amsterdam Café.
What recognition has David Bancroft received?
James Beard Foundation Award semifinalist, Best Chef: South (2016).
