Growing up in Greenville, SC, Charlie McKenna learned very early on about the art of true Southern BBQ. Grandma Lillie made sure of it. After attending Florida State University, McKenna graduated from New York’s Culinary Institute of America in 2000. He then cooked under legendary chef Norman Van Aken in Florida, before becoming a sous chef at two of Chicago’s four-star fine-dining landmarks: Tru and Avenues in The Peninsula Hotel.

Chef Charlie McKenna opened the flagship Lillie’s Q restaurant in July 2010 in Chicago, named for his Grandmother Lillie, who taught him the art of southern cooking back home in Greenville, SC. The goal was simple: Create a Southern-inspired BBQ experience that’s true to regional traditions and reimagined into unique, authentic and delicious flavors. And he hasn’t slowed down since.

LILLIE'S Q FOUNDER / CHEF
- CHARLIE MCKENNA