Jacob Sessoms

The central marker here is the role Jacob Sessoms holds now: founder and chef-partner of Perfectly Ad Hoc Hospitality Group. Read as trade language, it points to a working method rather than a title for display — moving between concepts without losing the same priorities: local product, careful sourcing, and menus that shift with what the season allows. The work values restraint over flourish, letting ingredients carry more of the load.

Table in Asheville set that standard in 2005. Built as a small, seasonal, New American restaurant with a particular nod to the Southeast, it relied on long-standing relationships with local farmers and artisans. Those ties gave the food its frame and helped define a kitchen approach built on directness and clarity rather than excess.

At Golden Hour, the format is wood-fired chophouse cooking, which brings fire, smoke, and timing into the foreground. Seasonal dishes such as Country Captain Corn Salad and NC Fish Crudo sit beside wood-fire grill offerings including Whole Roast Pig and Slow-Grilled Porchetta, so the menu moves between produce-led plates and larger cuts without losing its seasonal logic. That connection ties training to labor and labor to instinct, the sort of practical knowledge that often settles into a chef’s hands before it becomes part of the public record. His own account of that period was blunt: "Of course, the first 48 hours are kind of like non-reality."

His career in Asheville began publicly with Table in 2005, where he served as chef-owner. He later became owner and chef at All Day Darling, extending his reach while keeping his base in the same city. He also holds the title of chef-partner at Perfectly Ad Hoc Hospitality Group, the role that now sits at the center of his work. Across those kitchens, the through line remains unmistakable: a seasonal point of view, close relationships with farmers and artisans, and a preference for dishes that let ingredients speak plainly.

Jacob's signature dishes include Golden Hour, Table, and All Day Darling.