By Kevin Coughlin -

By Kevin Coughlin

Restaurateur Chris Cannon can add another feather to his cap.

His Jockey Hollow Bar & Kitchen has put Morristown on the dining map — specifically, Esquire’s map. The magazine has named the South Street dining venue to its annual list of Best New Restaurants.

“In truth, it’s totally nuts, yeah, and it’s wonderful. Jockey Hollow transmutes crazy into magic because Chris Cannon—dapper, fierce, and manic—has the balls to match his dream,” writes the magazine, which describes Jockey Hollow as “excess (in moderation).”

It’s the only New Jersey restaurant among the 15 places on the list.

Video: Chris Cannon shares his story with MorristownGreen.com

Cannon, who lives in Mountain Lakes, had five three-star restaurants in New York but soured on the experience over partnership troubles. When he refurbished Morristown’s Vail Mansion to create Jockey Hollow last year, he told the magazine, some in the dining world viewed him as a carpetbagger.

He’s confident of proving naysayers wrong:

“When you open a restaurant, the customer finds you—but you also find the right customer. And when we find the right customer, they’re our friends. Within a couple of years, this place is gonna be a restaurant full of the people that love us and that we love,” Cannon told Esquire.

The full list:

Shaya, New Orleans

Townsman, Boston

The Progress, San Francisco

Muscadine, Portland, Oregon

The Grey, Savannah

Jockey Hollow Bar & Kitchen, Morristown, New Jersey

B.S. Taqueria and Broken Spanish, Los Angeles

Momotaro, Chicago

Dolo Restaurant and Bar, Chicago

The Duck Inn, Chicago

Little Park, New York

Shuko, New York

Santina, New York

Mountain Bird, New York

READ MORE ABOUT THE JOCKEY HOLLOW BAR & KITCHEN

Video: Chris Cannon makes his stand in Morristown