Famed local chef reflects on progress, politics in his adopted city

By Candice Briggie
In the wake of the controversial passing of the Religious Freedom Bill, a measure signed
into law last week in Indiana, Tennesseans should not forget that not too long ago in Tennessee,
something very similar came close to passing.
In mid-February last year, Sen. Brian Kelsey of Germantown sponsored a look-alike bill
that would allow people or religious organizations with strong religious beliefs to refuse to offer
goods and services to those that would further the unions of same sex couples in Tennessee.
Kelseys support of the bill drew the attention of an unexpected critic, local chef, Kelly English.
English, 36, is what some may say a local celebrity. He is the owner and head chef of the
esteemed Restaurant Iris. English began his educational career at Ole Miss as a pre-law student
and quickly transitioned to southern studies. From there he discovered his love for cooking while
working through college in a kitchen in Oxford, Miss.
When he decided he wanted to go to culinary school, he was afraid his father would be
disappointed, but he was wrong. English senior, took his son to August, a famous fine-dining
restaurant in New Orleans and encouraged him to follow his hungry heart.
From there, English studied at the Culinary Institute of America in New York City.
Not only is the English renowned for his culinary creativity and success; he has also
been very widely recognized for a pinch of political activism.
In response to the proposed bill, English wrote a Facebook post that would gain attention
of media attention, and recieve thousands of Likes.

He wrote:, The offer is on the table: I will host a political fundraiser for this guys opponent in
the next election.
The statement brought a slew of coverage, and it could have been coincidence, but the
following day, Kelseys name disappeared as sponsor, and the bill died shortly after.
I think people assume a lot about me, English said. They assume that I am an
extremely liberal democrat, and that is not the case. Im a logical and caring human being, and I
sometimes get stuck between how I feel as a business owner and the way I feel about the way
things should be.
English went on to say that in regards to LGBT issues, there have been many people that
have taught him about life, love and caring, and that he employs a very diverse group of people.
And for English the issue is very personal.
I had a cousin who killed himself because he couldnt tell our family he was gay. I cant
stand around and watch people mistreat each other and misconstrue things that are written in
chronicles of religion, use sentences and isolate sentences from verses and verses from books.
English said he is not interested in politics but people.
Im interested in the network of people that I know and love. When I said that on
Facebook, I wasnt trying to make any political statement now I know I did. I just wanted to
tell the world, or at least the people who know me on Facebook I thought he was wrong.
Whether Englishs statement and the attention it received influenced Kelseys decision to
take his name off the bill will most likely remain a mystery.

As it happened, English did not host a fundraiser for an opponent, but he did host one in
the summer of 2014 for Tennessee Equality Project, an advocacy organization for the rights of
the LGBT community.
English said he has high hopes for the Supreme Court ruling that is expected sometime
before the end of June regarding the recognition of gay marriage nationwide, and said he thought
gay marriage should be recognized everywhere in the U.S. under the provisions of the Fourteenth
Amendment. The court will be hearing the cases of couples from Michigan, Ohio, Kentucky and
Tennessee.
I think that people need to understand that we are becoming a more tolerant society
every day, this is the next logical step.