KEVIN SHARKEY

Chef/owner

1608 Crafthouse, Virginia Beach

1608Crafthouse.com

Beach Eats + Drinks recently visited with noted chef, Kevin Sharkey, to get to know him a little better.

Kevin is chef/owner of 1608 Crafthouse. He has been in the industry for 35 years.

Tucked into an unassuming strip shopping center, 1608 Crafthouse is the kind of neighborhood restaurant that quietly overdelivers.

Chef Kevin opened the doors in 2015 with a simple idea: serve thoughtfully sourced, scratch-made food without the fuss or price tag of fine dining. More than a decade later, the formula still works.

The room has the comfortable, slightly quirky feel of a favorite neighborhood tavern, with craft beer taps, local brewery memorabilia and a decidedly come-as-you-are attitude.

The menu, however, shows Chef Kevin’s serious culinary chops, drawing heavily from Virginia, the Chesapeake Bay and the Mid-Atlantic. There are raw Virginia oysters and roasted bone marrow, shrimp and stone-ground grits, and poutine crowned with oxtail chili and a runny egg.

At 1608, “craft” isn’t decoration. It’s the philosophy.

BE+D:

What inspired you to become a chef

Kevin Sharkey:

I have always loved to cook, probably cooking with my mom and grandmother

BE+D:

How would you describe your cooking philosophy

KS:

Approachable elegance, taking great ingredients and treating them with respect. Great food doesn’t have to be pricy. While what we do at 1608 is a different style, I will put our quality and consistency up against any place in the area.

BE+D:

What’s one dish on your menu that everyone should try, and why

KS:

Probably the lamb burger, its kind of a sleeper on our menu (and my wife’s favorite dish) its very unique and not like any lamb burger you have had.

BE+D:

What is your favorite Virginia ingredient?

KS:
Not one specific, but to me the abundance of fresh local/seasonal ingredients that are available to us all year round encourage creativity.

BE+D:

When you aren’t in the kitchen, what are you doing?

KS:
Spending time with my wife Carlene and my son Owen.

BE+D:

Are you a savory or sweet guy?

KS:

Savory all day

Note: find recipes from Chef Kevin in a blog post HERE

This interview is in cooperation with our friends at the Virginia Beach Restaurant Association, www.DineInVB.com

1608 Drafthouse is at 1608 Pleasure House Rd., Virginia Beach. Call 757-965-4510 or visit www.1608Crafthouse.com

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[Beach Eats + Drinks] Interview | Chef Kevin Sharkey of 1608 Crafthouse