Chef Virgil Harper Debuts Fine Dining Restaurant In Houston, TX Alongside Executive Chef Aliyah Watley – AfroTech
After heating up the Atlanta food scene, Chef Virgil Harper is debuting a new concept in Houston, TX.
The Atlantic City, NJ, native was 16 years old when his spark for cooking was lit. He took a summer job as a line server at the Sands Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, where he was referred by his cousin, who had worked there as a chef in the early 1990s. In conversation with AFROTECH™, Harper said he “fell in love” with handling ingredients and informing customers about what they were eating at the buffet.
A year later, Harper began to take the culinary path more seriously. This led him to enroll in a Local 54 culinary program in partnership with the Philadelphia Restaurant School. He described it as a hands-on externship that allowed him to work in different outlets, including room service, a buffet, an Asian restaurant, and a steakhouse, across New Jersey, Philadelphia, and New York.
“It introduced me to a different, broadened spectrum of food that I was dealing with on a day-to-day basis. That helped educate me a lot faster,” he explained.
Making Strides In Atlanta
His first job as a buffet chef came in 2004 at the Borgata Hotel and Casino & Spa in Atlantic City. In 2011, Harper ventured to Atlanta, seeking a new change after the loss of his brother. He worked at an Italian restaurant called Pricci, where his mentor, Piero Premoli, worked as an executive chef.
His culinary journey has led him to cook for notable names such as former President Joe Biden and NBA Hall of Famer Dominique Wilkins, according to a press release shared with AFROTECH™.
“I was giving Atlanta something different,” he said.
Harper later transitioned to Roc South Cuisine and Cocktails as an executive chef and partner, earning a percentage of the business. As the pandemic disrupted operations, he proposed expanding into lunch service and offering takeout options, a move that ultimately proved pivotal. The strategy helped drive the restaurant’s growth, and once it returned to full capacity, Roc South saw consistent two-to three-hour wait times from Thursday through Sunday, further cementing its success.
Harper then pulled out of the venture and pivoted to self-fund Toast on Lenox — known for its brunch — in 2020 alongside executive chef and partner Aliyah Watley. The two met in 2014 while working at Suite Food Lounge. There are now two locations open in Atlanta, with the third opening in 2023 in Midtown.
Atlantic Ocean
Harper and Watley have now expanded their footprint to Houston, TX, with the launch of the upscale fine-dining restaurant Atlantic Ocean. Houston was ranked among the top cities for restaurant spending in a 2024 Escoffier study.
Speaking about working alongside Watley, Harper noted, “The days of just hiring a chef and giving them just a salary are over with. I wanna see the young chefs that are coming up to have sweat equity and stake in the business, so that way they could flourish. Whether they take their percentage and go and open up their own restaurant, or whether I’m involved and we open up the restaurant together. It don’t matter as long as the person that I’m working with gets to that next level.”
Atlantic Ocean officially opened to the public on April 1, according to a press release shared with AFROTECH™. The 5,100-square-foot space with 202 indoor seats and a 21-seat private dining room offers menu items including Moroccan lamb chops with sweet potato purée and lemon pepper tiger prawns, grilled branzino with chimichurri and citrus mojo, and lobster pasta with butter-poached claw meat and white wine. The venue offers cocktails, mocktails, wine, beer, and desserts, including a deconstructed cheesecake.
Watley, who was born in Charleston, SC, brings a rich culinary perspective to the restaurant’s menu, shaped by her upbringing surrounded by so many diverse cultures.
“Houston is a little bit more accepting of diversity and having your own style … You don’t necessarily have to play it safe ’cause there’s so many different cultures and so many people that meld together, and food is important for me ’cause it does that, it brings those people together, all different walks of life,” she said.
“It’s a fun menu,” Watley explained.
Atlantic Ocean is located at 6011 Washington Ave and is open between 5 p.m. and 10 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday. The restaurant is closed on Monday and Tuesday.
Be on the lookout for patio and brunch service, which will be additions to the restaurants, along with live music.
