Cheetie Kumar는 Raleigh의 Five Points 동네에 있는 레스토랑 Ajja의 셰프/오너로, 지중해, 중동 및 그 너머의 다양한 음식과 문화, 생생한 향신료, 요리 기술에서 영감을 얻습니다. Ajja는 2023년 6월에 문을 열었으며 James Beard Foundation Award에서 Best New Restaurant 부문 준결승에 올랐습니다. Ajja는 또한 Esquire Best New Restaurant,  Eater’s Best New Carolinas Restaurant and Raleigh’s Best Restaurant by Axios.

An India- and Bronx-raised Southerner and musician, Cheetie earned two James Beard Foundation Award nominations (and five semifinalist nods) for “Best Chef: Southeast” for her multi-cultural menus that blended the flavors of South Asia and the surrounding regions with local agriculture at the beloved Garland, which closed in 2022.  Ajja builds on the legacy of Garland and continues telling the rich story of North Carolina’s growers, farmers and purveyors in a vibrant indoor-outdoor neighborhood restaurant.  

Cheetie는 프로필링되었습니다 그만큼 뉴욕 타임즈, 남부 생활 그리고 월스트리트 저널, among many other national publications.  She is active in food advocacy and serves on the Board of Directors and as Vice President of both the Independent Restaurant Coalition and the Southern Foodways Alliance. She also serves on the board and the Government Affairs Committee of NCRLA. Cheetie is part of World Central Kitchen’s Chef Corps, a global network of culinary leaders who champion World Central Kitchen’s work providing fresh meals following crises.