By Bob Blalock
More than three decades ago, Dolester Miles and her sister were sewing curtains for a then-new white tablecloth restaurant in Birmingham, Highlands Bar & Grill. Miles’ job was to make salads and hors d’oeuvres, but early on she persuaded the chef, Frank Stitt, to let her make desserts.
Meanwhile, Stitt, who had the audacity and imagination to apply his French training to the Southern food he grew up eating in Cullman, began taking Highlands to places no Birmingham restaurant had gone. The national attention and acclaim included Gourmet magazine ranking Highlands a stunning No. 5 among the top U.S. restaurants in 2001, and Stitt that same year winning a prestigious James Beard Award for outstanding regional chef.
Monday night, Highlands and Miles claimed even larger prizes: The James Beard Foundation named Highlands the outstanding restaurant in America and Miles the outstanding pastry chef, ending years of “almost” for both. Highlands had been a finalist for the coveted outstanding restaurant award 10 years running, inspiring comparisons to soap opera actress Susan Lucci, who was nominated 18 years in a row for an Emmy before winning on her 19th try. Miles had been a semifinalist for outstanding pastry chef the past five years and made the final cut for the past three years. “I can’t believe this, but I just want to thank everybody that voted for me in the James Beard Award,” a tearful Miles told the audience at Chicago’s Lyric Opera. “And thanks, Frank and Pardis (Stitt) for putting up with me all these years. And thanks to my pastry team back at home that’s doing all the work and I get to come here.”
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