Once, while eating Chef Missy Wolff Fraley’s poisson en papillote with herbal sauce, a woman was reduced to tears. She said the dish reminded her of a beautiful trip she’d taken to France with her husband, the love of her life.
Thomas and Missy Fraley, owners of French Magnolia in Bristol. Chef Missy is the host of French Magnolia Cooks on PBS Appalachia. Photography by Sera Petras
The encounter was a powerful one—for the diner and the chef. “My heart filled with pure joy,” Fraley says. “And I realized at that moment that by using my gifts, I was bringing happiness to others.” From then on, she felt like she was cooking with her whole heart.
At that point in her culinary journey, Fraley and her husband Thomas were the executive chef and wine steward at a five-star Relais & Châteaux property in Blowing Rock, North Carolina. There, she continued to hone her prowess in the kitchen, developing her own take on “old world French dishes designed to speak to people’s souls and remind them of their travels or great memories,” she explains.
French Magnolia 1.0
In 2018, the couple relocated to Bristol, Virginia, orchestrating their own “luxury moveable feast” company. As “a true-blue Southern gal with French ancestry running through my veins,” Fraley rebranded herself as the “French Magnolia”—an ode to her Southern roots and her life-long love of anything French. During the pandemic, her entrepreneurial venture boomed as home-based, smaller events took off. “Caterer” hardly covered what she and Thomas offered. Clients were astounded, describing the depth of attention the duo poured into every detail—from deciding on dishes and arranging the table décor to wine pairings.
That level of intention was no surprise for people familiar with Fraley’s C.V. The Atlanta native’s route to culinary wizardry was circuitous, but it provided her with a multifaceted background that’s served her well—from studying interior design in college to graduate school at the American Musical and Dramatic Academy
in New York, where she supported herself by working in a prestigious Manhattan kitchen, embracing French cooking in particular.
Her experiences made her uniquely qualified to orchestrate extraordinary epicurean experiences. “From start to finish, everything is perfect—from the napkins on the table to the flowers to the desserts,” says state Senator Todd Pillion who represents the Commonwealth’s 6th District in Southwest Virginia. Pillion hired the French Magnolia for a small 2023 event. All 10 guests appreciated Fraley’s considerable flair, and many have since hired the team.
French Magnolia 2.0
Along the way, the couple ran into Jacob Dellinger, a producer at PBS Appalachia. The director and cinematographer, with multiple Emmys under his belt, spotted Fraley’s YouTube video on homemade French mayonnaise and became an instant fan. Seeing potential, he asked if she’d consider hosting a culinary television show.
Who was she to say no?
But she had requirements. First, she wanted to write the episodes and act as an executive producer to “properly steward the stories of these farmers,” she says. “I live in this community, so it was important to me. I want viewers to be inspired and educated on the intelligence and passion of people from this area, and I want people from this area to feel heard and seen and appreciated and honored,” she says, adding that too often people carry unflattering and incorrect stereotypes about farmers and Appalachia.
Second, she wanted the show, which she naturally named French Magnolia Cooks, to be authentic, “to inspire and teach people that food doesn’t come from the grocery store.” The show’s scope—“from farm, field, garden, and stream to the chef and somm [sommelier] to the table”—conveys its range of rich topics and hints at the guests to come. Their first, Will and Amy Campbell of Rich Valley Farm in Saltville, sell their pasture-raised chicken, pork, and beef in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains.
A variety of French Magnolia’s starters, including a charcuterie and fromage board, chilled beets l ’orange, baked escargot, duck foie gras mousse, and duck fat truffle fries.
Chef Missy adorns caramelized crème brûlée with fresh raspberries.
Boots-on-the-Ground
In a nod to the authentic, filming the Campbells for French Magnolia Cooks wasn’t just about noting the tender and juicy quality of Rich Valley’s chickens. “I was impressed by how much they showed the actual chicken processing,” says Amy. “They don’t shy away from the parts that most people who are not on a farm don’t see very often.” And remarkably, after the team wrapped up filming, the Fraleys kept working. “We processed probably 200 or more chickens that day, and they helped with every single chicken,” she marvels.
From sifting through the “black gold” of rich compost to casting for smallmouth bass along the upper James River, Fraley is hands-on and boots-on-the-ground. But she quickly realized there would be a learning curve. “I’m actually embarrassed to admit that I didn’t know anything about the business of farming,” she says. “Learning that has changed me and how I cook.” She now looks at food, nutrition, and soil more intentionally and gratefully.
After the first season—ten 30-minute episodes—French Magnolia Cooks won two regional Emmys: one for Missy’s editing and one for Dellinger’s cinematography. Senator Pillion remains a die-hard French Magnolia fan—“I watched the whole series in one evening, because it’s exactly what I love about Southwest Virginia.”
French Magnolia Magic
Producing the show is no small feat. “All the research, writing, hosting, producing, editing, travel—and the amount of patience it takes to do all of that—is the biggest challenge,” says Fraley.
Each episode opens with a narrative theme, with Fraley reflecting on an aspect of farming, meals, or culinary philosophy. While she does share cooking advice, recipes, and techniques, each show also feels like a full-on food immersion—how it’s grown, produced, cooked, and consumed. “Every idea starts with a seed, a revelation, an aha moment,” she shares during the episode on greens and compost. Whether starring cows or cherries or greens, each show closes with a dinner scene that also includes the farmers, hunters, or fishermen gathered around the meal.
Thomas maintains that his wife is the show’s main ingredient, although he admits that the chemistry between the pair, who just celebrated their 11th anniversary, is unmistakable. “People do like to see us together and how we complement each other in our personalities and our talents,” he says. “And it helps us to show how food and wine work together to create a joie de vivre.” Thomas, the executive producer, relishes sharing the history and provenance of what he’s pouring and telling stories of the winemakers.
In 2024, French Magnolia Cooks once again racked up Emmy nominations. And in November, the couple opened a brick-and-mortar French-American brasserie and wine bar in Bristol to much fanfare. It checks all the boxes in the couple’s collective wheelhouse: décor, purveyors, recipes, menu, wine, ambience, and more.
“I’m grateful for the experiences that have forced me out of my safety box,” says Fraley, “and pushed me out into the world to share my heart.” TheFrenchMagnolia.com
Click here to see a recent menu at the Fraley’s new French brasserie in Bristol, French Magnolia.
This article originally appeared in the February 2025 issue.
