The Tavern

Quinn Wilson knows he has what it takes to be a James Beard Award-winning chef. But after he’s kicked off the chef competition show, Best Chef Ever, he thinks he’s blown his chance to launch his career. Then, old-school celebrity chef Fox Von Stein, who’s dropped out of the public eye and is fighting irrelevancy himself, offers Quinn an opportunity. Von Stein is re-opening a tavern with a long and storied history, in a small town best known for a pivotal battle in the Civil War. For Quinn, the job is a fresh start and a second chance. The opening is set to coincide with a big anniversary of a famous Civil War battle, an event that will attract many high-profile out-of-town visitors. It’s just the kind of event that could put Quinn back on the radar of the gatekeepers of the culinary landscape.

But re-opening the tavern is fraught with challenges, from building codes around preservation of historic sites, to wooing investors, to locals’ lukewarm reception to outsiders. As if that’s not enough, Quinn starts to believe the tavern is haunted – literally. Electrical issues, strange noises, missing items. Can he overcome the metaphorical and metaphysical and succeed?