A native son of the Lowcountry, Jeremy Holst’s journey is rooted in the resilience, community, and the flavors that shaped his upbringing and the passion he brings to his own acclaimed Summerville, SC restaurant, Bexley.
By Pamela Jouan, Photographed by AZALEA Magazine
From his first shift washing dishes at Sully’s (now Home Team BBQ) on Sullivan’s Island to helming his own acclaimed restaurant, Bexley Fish & Raw Bar in Summerville, Chef Jeremy Holst’s journey is rooted in resilience, community, and the flavors of his Lowcountry upbringing.
Holst remembers the moment he first peeked into a restaurant kitchen, thinking — “man, that looks like fun.” The camaraderie, the pace—he wanted in. Initially, his mother balked at the idea of culinary school, but his passion only deepened. A mentor at Greenville Technical College, recognizing his drive, wrote him a recommendation to the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, New York. “I couldn’t believe it,” Holst says. “But you have to. You have to believe in yourself and that the dream is possible.”
After graduating, Holst honed his craft in Hawaii (The Four Seasons), Atlanta (Pano’s and Paul’s), and Las Vegas (Bellagio and Ritz Carlton), among other places, but Charleston was always home. “I think, like most young cooks, my goal was to open my own place in my city.” Along the way, he experienced more than his share of setbacks— years of banks telling him “no” when he sought funding for his own place, a brutal battle with sarcoma cancer, and the uncertainty of COVID. But he never wavered.
“I know what it’s like to be alive. I’ve looked over the ledge and dangled there—when I was sick and again when I committed to opening this restaurant and felt the heaviness of that responsibility. But as I tell my kids, if you’re willing to believe in something and sacrifice for it, you can turn the world.”
In 2022, Holst opened Bexley Fish & Raw Bar in Summerville. Bexley, named for the North Charleston street where his grandparents lived and where he spent much of his childhood.
Summerville, chosen at first simply because it was where he could afford a house for his growing family. “For years I would say Summerville and people would roll their eyes,” Holst says. “But I think it’s ‘right time, right place’—and now I can’t imagine doing this anywhere else.”
Bexley has become part and parcel of Summerville’s fabric. What started as a 35-seat restaurant now accommodates twice as many, thanks to a community that has embraced it wholeheartedly. Holst marvels at how the restaurant is tied to the people who fill the dining room each night. Vegetables, flowers, even plates are purchased from the same people who are often sitting at the tables. “It dawned on me it’s all Summerville—from the people who are eating to those making our plates,” he says. “That’s what community means.”
Holst thrives on cooking in the moment. He compares it to jazz, where a little knowledge allows you to break the rules. “Mother Nature sets the tempo,” he says. “We wait on tomatoes or peaches, then celebrate when they arrive. The ingredients spark my creativity; I rarely plate the same dish the same way twice.”
Ultimately, Holst wants every guest to leave happy. For him, it’s about more than the food—it’s the music, the space, the staff, and the energy in the room. “From hello and welcome to thank you and goodbye, I want people to feel they had a great overall experience.”
