The film industry has the Oscars, the music industry has the Grammy Awards. If you're a chef or restaurateur, you want a James Beard Award medal around your neck.
Since 1990, the not-for-profit James Beard Foundation named after "the father of American cuisine," has been honoring the outstanding names in the food and beverage industry.
There is no cash reward, but a win – or even a nomination – can substantially increase the buzz for business, according to foundation President Susan Ungaro.
Chef and restaurant winners are being announced on Monday, May 5 at Lincoln Center's Avery Fisher Hall in New York City and Journalism, Books and Broadcast were announced Friday, May 2 at Gotham Hall in New York City.
We'll be updating all the chef and restaurant nominees below as the winners are revealed. Explore the gallery above for pictures and color from last year's awards.
https://www.instagram.com/p/noj4rrPxMx/
Robert De Niro makes a cameo in the James Beard press room, celebrating Sirio Maccioni's Lifetime Achievement award.
Best New Restaurant
Betony (New York City)
Carbone (New York City)
Coqueta (San Francisco, California)
Estela (New York City)
Winner: Pêche (New Orleans, Louisiana)
Outstanding Bar Program
Bar Agricole (San Francisco, California)
Winner: The Bar at the NoMad Hotel (New York City)
Clyde Common (Portland, Oregon)
Maison Premiere (Brooklyn, New York)
The Violet Hour (Chicago, Illinois)
Leo Robitschek and Will Guidara of The NoMad share some ham in the press room.
Outstanding Chef
Michael Anthony, Gramercy Tavern (New York City)
Isaac Becker, 112 Eatery (Minneapolis, Minnesota)
Suzanne Goin, Lucques (Los Angeles, California)
David Kinch, Manresa (Los Gatos, California)
Winner: Nancy Silverton, Pizzeria Mozza (Los Angeles, California)
Marc Vetri, Vetri (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania)
Outstanding Pastry Chef
Winner: Dominique Ansel, Dominique Ansel Bakery (New York City)
Dana Cree, Blackbird (Chicago, Illinois)
Belinda Leong, b. patisserie (San Francisco, California)
Dahlia Narvaez, Osteria Mozza (Los Angeles, California)
Christina Tosi, Momofuku (New York City)
Outstanding Restaurant
Hearth (New York City)
Highlands Bar and Grill (Birmingham, Alabama)
Winner: The Slanted Door (San Francisco, California)
Spiaggia (Chicago, Illinois)
wd~50 (New York City)
Outstanding Restaurateur
Winner: Barbara Lynch, Barbara Lynch Gruppo, Boston, Massachusetts (No. 9 Park, Menton, B&G Oysters, and others)
Donnie Madia, One Off Hospitality Group, Chicago, Illinois (Blackbird, Avec, The Publican, and others)
Cindy Pawlcyn, Napa Valley, California (Mustards Grill and Cindy’s Back Street Kitchen)
Caroline Styne, The Lucques Group, Los Angeles, California (Lucques, A.O.C., Tavern, and others)
Phil Suarez, Suarez Restaurant Group, New York City (ABC Kitchen, Jean-Georges, wd~50, and others)
Outstanding Service
Blue Hill (New York City)
Quince (San Francisco, California)
Winner: The Restaurant at Meadowood, St. Helena, California
Topolobampo, (Chicago, Illinois)
Vetri (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania)
Outstanding Wine Program
A16 (San Francisco, California)
Bar Boulud, NYC
Winner: The Barn at Blackberry Farm (Walland, Tennessee)
FIG (Charleston, South Carolina)
The Little Nell (Aspen, Colorado)
Andy Chabot of Blackberry Farm
Outstanding Wine, Spirits, or Beer Professional
Sam Calagione, Dogfish Head Craft Brewery (Milton, Delaware)
Ron Cooper, Del Maguey Single Village Mezcal (Ranchos de Taos, New Mexico)
Winner: Garrett Oliver, Brooklyn Brewery (Brooklyn, New York)
Harlen Wheatley, Buffalo Trace Distillery (Frankfort, Kentucky)
David Wondrich, spirits educator (Brooklyn, New York)
Garrett Oliver of Brooklyn Brewery
Rising Star Chef of the Year
Winner (tie): Jimmy Bannos Jr., The Purple Pig (Chicago, Illinois)
Katie Button, Cúrate (Asheville, North Carolina)
Jessica Largey, Manresa (Los Gatos, California)
David Posey, Blackbird (Chicago, Illinois)
Winner (tie): Blaine Wetzel, The Willows Inn on Lummi Island (Lummi Island, Washington)
Best Chef: Great Lakes
Winner: Dave Beran, Next (Chicago, Illinois)
Curtis Duffy, Grace (Chicago, Illinois)
Jonathon Sawyer, The Greenhouse Tavern (Cleveland, Ohio)
Paul Virant, Vie Restaurant (Western Springs, Illinois)
Andrew Zimmerman, Sepia (Chicago, Illinois)
Best Chef: Mid-Atlantic
Cathal Armstrong, Restaurant Eve (Alexandria, Virginia)
Spike Gjerde, Woodberry Kitchen (Baltimore, Maryland)
Brad Spence, Amis (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania)
Winner: Vikram Sunderam, Rasika (Washington, D.C.)
Cindy Wolf, Charleston (Baltimore, Maryland)
Best Chef: Midwest
Winner: Justin Aprahamian, Sanford (Milwaukee, Wisconsin)
Paul Berglund, The Bachelor Farmer (Minneapolis, Minnesota)
Gerard Craft, Niche (Clayton, Missouri)
Michelle Gayer, Salty Tart (Minneapolis, Minnesota)
Kevin Nashan, Sidney Street Cafe (St. Louis, Missouri)
Lenny Russo, Heartland Restaurant & Farm Direct Market (St. Paul, Minnesota)
Best Chef: Northeast
Winner: Jamie Bissonnette, Coppa (Boston, Massachusetts)
Joanne Chang, Flour Bakery + Cafe (Boston, Massachusetts)
Gerry Hayden, The North Fork Table & Inn (Southold, New York)
Matt Jennings, Farmstead Inc. (Providence, Rhode Island)
Michael Leviton, Lumière (Newton, Massachusetts)
Barry Maiden, Hungry Mother (Cambridge, Massachusetts)
Best Chef: Northwest
Renee Erickson, The Whale Wins (Seattle, Washington)
Jason Franey, Canlis (Seattle, Washington)
Winner: Naomi Pomeroy, Beast (Portland, Oregon)
Ethan Stowell, Staple & Fancy (Seattle, Washington)
Cathy Whims, Nostrana (Portland, Oregon)
Naomi Pomeroy beasts it in the press room after her win.
Best Chef: NYC
Winner: April Bloomfield, The Spotted Pig
Dan Kluger, ABC Kitchen
Mark Ladner, Del Posto
Jonathan Waxman, Barbuto
Michael White, Marea
April Bloomfield wins Best Chef NYC.
Best Chef: South
Vishwesh Bhatt, Snackbar (Oxford, Mississippi)
Justin Devillier, La Petite Grocery (New Orleans, Louisiana)
Winner (tie): Ryan Prewitt, Pêche Seafood Grill (New Orleans, Louisiana)
Alon Shaya, Domenica (New Orleans, Louisiana)
Winner (tie): Sue Zemanick, Gautreau's (New Orleans, Louisiana)
Best Chef: Southeast
Kathy Cary, Lilly's (Louisville, Kentucky)
Winner: Ashley Christensen, Poole's Downtown Diner (Raleigh, North Carolina)
Edward Lee, 610 Magnolia (Louisville, Kentucky)
Steven Satterfield, Miller Union (Atlanta, Georgia)
Tandy Wilson, City House (Nashville, Tennessee)
Best Chef: Southwest
Kevin Binkley, Binkley’s (Cave Creek, Arizona)
Bryce Gilmore, Barley Swine (Austin, Texas)
Hugo Ortega, Hugo’s (Houston, Texas)
Winner: Chris Shepherd, Underbelly (Houston, Texas)
Justin Yu, Oxheart (Houston, Texas)
Best Chef: West
Stuart Brioza and Nicole Krasinski, State Bird Provisions (San Francisco, California)
Michael Cimarusti, Providence (Los Angeles, California)
Corey Lee, Benu (San Francisco, California)
Winner: Daniel Patterson, Coi (San Francisco, California)
Jon Shook and Vinny Dotolo, Animal (Los Angeles, California)
Aaaaand Eatocracy got to hang out with Questlove, which we take as a James Beard win, too.
Editor's note: Eatocracy Editor Kat Kinsman is the vice chair of the James Beard Journalism Committee, the group that oversees the journalism category's awards. These awards are entirely separate from the restaurant awards. An independent accounting firm oversees the process.
The headline should be "James Beard Award Restaurants for the 1%". Seeing too many NYC, LA, Chicago and San Fran locations.
Wow, a NOLA restaurant beat out SF and NY!! THAT's an accomplishment!!
Seems to me the only restaurants considered are in the Millionaire districts ... St. Louis, for example, only has one entry from Clayton ... there are many finer restaurants in St. louis that are NOT IN CLAYTON.
Seems these are the snobs of the Culinary world. If it isn't in the "right" neighborhood, the cuisine cannot be considered.
The award that impresses me the most is the one for best service. That is the secret for restaurants that last for years.
I live walking distance from Manresa. All the locals I know do not like it and consider it pompous, overpriced and simply not worth it. I will admit I have only eaten there once but I have spoken to a number of foodies here and I haven't found one that is impressed. Manresa;s claim to fame is it's agreement with farmers that brings local produce right to their table. So what? We have some of the richest farmland in the world and just about everyone grows great produce in their backyard.
We had a 10 course tasting dinner. Most of the courses had caviar or foie gras or both. We had a course of raw fish that was OK but nothing special compared to what you can get in the better Japanese places here.
I will save my money and eat like a king. There are some baby Romano beans in my backyard right now that are 100 times better than anything a chef could dream up. Soon I'll have tomatoes, artichokes, peppers, cucumbers, pluots, apricots, apples, cherries, Sicilian plums, baby garlic, Valencia oranges, and Meyer lemons plus all my fresh herbs. If you can't eat like a king with produce like that then you don't know how to eat...
BTW I cooked at one of the most expensive French restaurants in the Bay Area when I was younger and I understand fine dining. I have eaten in wonderful restaurants in NY, Paris, San Francisco, LA, etc.
I am sure that those selected were deserving and I also think Sarasota, Florida has a family that excels in offering wonderful food. The "Klauber men" Michael & Tommy are outstanding. Michael's restaurant "Michaels On East" is to die for. Tommy's restaurants, "Patti George's" and "Polo Grill & Bar" are both yummy and fun.
We tried Michaels on East once and their Conch Chowder was watery and loaded with green peppers. Maybe it was a bad day. We all have them. In any event we crossed that off our list.
Shot down in 20 minutes flat. Please try again.
Unfortunately, the Beard foundation believes NYC and San Francisco are the only cities in the country. There are amazing chefs creating remarkable dishes many other cities to which this award only pays lip service.
Funny! Awards by people who have never been outside New York City. Typical New Yorker ... we're the center of the universe!
Notice that culinary hack and racist Paula Deen is not on the list (was she ever?). Funny how good publicity can take the mediocre to fame.
There is a huge difference between being a cook with a personality and being a chef running a fine dining restaurant. Notice that the only TV chef mentioned here is Batali an he didn't win anything.
I think Deen was attacked and accused for no good reason. Did she use words that are offensive? Who hasn't? I did too when I was too young and stupid to realize how wrong it is. When she admitted she has used the N word she said she thought it was wrong and stupid and had done it when she was young. She was sued by a single ex-employee who settled out of court.
I was never a fan of her show or style of cooking but I thought she got way more heat than she deserved.
How does the James Beard Award compare to receiving a Michelin star? Are they equivalent awards on separate continents? Is one award more prestigious than the other? Inquiring minds would like to know.
Totally separate organizations/countries. James Beard is American and Michelin is French
It's interesting. Michelin has their own employed "inspectors" who dine out anonymously at restaurants around the world and assign them star rankings, but they're each evaluated separately rather than in competition. The James Beard restaurant awards are a competition, and the winners are voted on my judges who are in the food industry.
As for prestige - totally subjective, but both are pretty respectable.
Thank you. That clarifies immensely.
Also, Michelin Stars are only awarded in select cities in the USA.
One is super pretentious and the other is tres pretentious.
Guess what? There are restaurants outside of New York CIty. In Houston, Atlanta, Albuquerque, Salt Lake City, and Omaha.
This group of awards is focused solely on the Archie Bunker's of the world and those who live in Manhattan, Brooklyn, and what are the other boroughs?
Great, you never have to deal with us Archie Bunkers if you stay far the hell away from New York City. We'd love not to have you. I hope your next plate of Veal Cardinale in Omaha blows your mind.
Hey, Shoebooty calm down, how did NYC ever get a reputation for being so nice?
The Bronx, Queens, and Staten Island.
Atlanta has an ah-mazing restaurant scene that was totally snubbed.
Good to see my lil' city of San Francisco performing so well this year!
What about Grand Rapids MI. Beer city usa without a nomination for brewery. and some of the resturants in this town are unreal!
How do I nominate someone for this award, cause my son is a great chef. He's a graduate of the Culinary Arts in Austin???
Why all the question marks? You're not sure if he's a graduate or not?
Way too biased to New York City. Just because the reviewers either live there or travel there.
And New Orleans, too.
Hmmm, find a story. Find the workers that work in those restaurants. Find the middle class.
Looks a little biased towards NYC.
That's because "there are no decent chefs or restaurants outside NYC."
The best restaurant is wherever retired Navy SEAL Curt Campbell is cooking...That guy used to cook a 7 course meal at the SEAL Camp in Niland, CA when everyone else was trying to finger f...k a pack of ramen in the microwave...unbelievable and now all these years later, I wonder what that guy is cooking now...
Why is not El Paso's Chicos Tacos on the list?
When voting started, everyone who ate there was making a bee-line to the baño.
Not to be the stereotypical New Yorker, but what other city has its own category?!! :)
Its just food. This is worse than an award show for comedy writers. There might be a hint here as to why the average American is morbidly obese.
The average american is a retard. That's why they're obese.
Its near equivalent to the Michelin star awards in Europe etc. etc. It is supposed to be about fine dining and experience but the categories are too few
Really?
So people become obese from eating at fine dining restaurants? I would love to see the scientific study you did to determine that. Most people who are obese aren't eating at fine restaurants, they are eating at places that super size and serve over the top portions and fatty, greasy, fried foods.
You can't even be a hater properly. How embarrassing for you.
I'm good. I'll take some bbq back home in k.c. any day over these snotty liberal joints
U mad?
Stupid people...doing...things well...and being...recognized!!!!
BBQ should be category
I'm a liberal and I WOULD take KC BBQ over these snobby joints :)
Liberal? I ate at Manresa. It cost $1000 for me and my wife and 2 kids. Before tips and taxes. Liberals don't eat like that. Liberals like tofu and bean sprouts, not caviar and truffles.
I guess conservatives like Arby's.
$1000 for a meal? I don't care how good it taste, It all going to end up in the crapper eventually.
Manresa was worth every penny. As is Providence in LA. Cimarusti and Kinch deserve their awards and praise.
Liberal joints?
I'm curious as to how you were able to determine the political party affiliation of each restaurant owner on this list.
Haters just gotta hate I guess, regardless of truth or logic.
New Orleans! WOO HOO!
I think N.O. Cajun/Creole food is WAY overrated.
Think what you will, but millions of people disagree.
Best Hot Dog Restaurant:
That one mini-mart on the highway between Chico and Red Bluff, BFE California.
Seriously though, best hot dogs I've ever eaten and I've seen my share of processed tube shaped meats.
Really? ~_~
In the future, all restaurants will be Taco Bell.
I'm guessing he's never even tried the Ole Rump & Bump in Harveysburg, Ohio, now has he?
He apparently hasn't been to Pittsburgh.
I guess they don't eat or visit restaurants in Hawaii or Alaska and stick to the lower 48 states.
It's apparent that he visits every restaurant in the US during the year so he can be qualified enough to present his rewards. That or whomever fills his pockets the most . . . wins.
Note: James Beard died a while back, these awards are voted on by living folks.
Living people are much easier to get votes from anyway.
Waiter, this glass of cambodian breast milk is slightly warm and the elk scrotum is a little apricotish mmmkay.
dude i almost died laughing! LMAO
Omgggg dying laughing
Customer: "Waiter, Waiter! ... there's a spider in my soup!"
Waiter: "That's funny, they must've run out of flies."
Frog: Waiter, there's only one fly in my soup.
Waiter, this glass of cambodian breast milk is slightly warm and the elk scrotum is a little apricotish mmmkay.
I can never find the organic version of the milk....so upsetting :P
Well, I certainly just added a few dozen more restaurants to try in Los Angeles!!! :)
How about posting a comment that isn't about you.
You just p!ss off.....
Oh I'm sorry. Was that your mommy? Good.
In the regional Best Chef categories, why are Milwaukee, Minneapolis and St. Paul in the Midwest instead of Great Lakes category? Milwaukee's right on Lake Michigan! And the Twin Cities are a stone's throw from Lake Superior. What gives?
When did the fourth largest city in the US fall off the face of the earth? Houston has more great places to eat than Las Vegas and there are some really great chefs there too.
Having lived in houston and vegas. U are nuts if u actually think houston has better food than vegas. U should getvyour tastebuds checked either that or u eat mcdonalds nightly and have no clue what your talking about
You must be nuts if you think Vegas has better food than Houston. That is real funny right there.
And by "The World" we mean New York, San Francisco, and Chicago.
Who are these people? Where is Michael Symon.....Alex Guarnaschelli.....Bobby Flay....Daniel Boulud?
Why are the famous chef's not winning these awards???
Because they are busy shooting for TV shows.. They dont cook good food anymore
They don't give awards to people for their name. Bobby flay hasn't done anything new or worthwhile in years.
Michael cimarusti however is owning LA.
Bar Boloud made the list for Best Wine Program.
Many of them (and their restaurants) have already won and thus can't be nominated in the same category again.
Chef Rick James of Quincy Street Bistro in St. Louis was a semifinalist nominee for Rising Star. It's an absolute shame that he didn't progress further. Everything that comes out of his kitchen has the magic touch of the true locavore. If you're in town, skip The Hill and all the fancypants CWE dining, and come over to Quincy!
Why is this news?
Because there are multiple 24-hour-a-day "news" agencies. And there's only so much REAL news out there to be reported. As such, filler pieces like this get branded as "news" and reported on. The whole "human interest" thing.
Anyhow, most of these places are places many people would just never go. As what they label "cuisine", is stuff the general population would look at and label *blech!*
Maybe this makes me some misanthropic, knuckle-dragging peon. C'est la vie!
Okay, trying this again.
Why is this "news"? Because CNN and all these other 24-hour news agencies only have so much REAL news to cover, and that stuff has all been covered to death. Pointless little human interest pieces like this that nobody outside of a tiny micro-culture actually cares about are thus expanded and reported on as "news", simply because people would be getting laid off otherwise.
Oh, and it helps distract from the various important topics any given "news" agency's political leanings dictate they not touch with a 10 foot pole.
I'm sure, to some foofy foody crowd, this stuff is TERRIBLY important. But looking at the menus of these places. Well, *I* would never go to any of them. Nor would many people for whom "cuisine" is synonymous with "blech!"
Maybe this indicates I'm some misanthropic knuckle-dragger without an ounce of inspiration in me.
C'est la vie!
.....because you're in a section labeled "eatocracy."
How about my wife's kitchen? She makes delicious meals 7 days a week.
Happy wife happy life :)
Im surprised there isn't one winner from Miami,or South Florida at all..... There are some excellent restaurants in Miami.....
Always a fair amount of subjectivity involved, however, the fact that you call out a major Metro area does say something; nothing good. That said, try get a reservation at any of the places mentioned. I prefer my favorites to fly under the radar.
Try Cartel Street Food Bar on Fairmont St. next time you are in Montreal..
The amazing part is I have never heard of these restaurants before.
I know, I know....Perhaps next year we will see Denny's, Red Lobster, and Burger King. Then you will see something you recognize.
I know what you're saying, but I dare Mario Batali to make a cheddar biscuit as good as Red Lobster's.
Yep, mostly in big cities. They throw a few from small cities/towns in there just to say they included them. However, most of the best meals you'll find (and cheap!) are from small town, USA. They just never get national press for obvious reasons.
Nine J e w s and a N e g r o, who could have guessed? This list is a joke. Where's Maestros, the Palms, and 555 East American Steakhouse in Long Beach to name a few. Are you serious?
Steakhouses are boring and steaks take relatively low amount of skill compared to other food.. why would they ever be nominated? I've been to Maestros... nothing special about it.. and it's a chain.
not defending bobsmiths list, a great signature steak is hard to perfect and deserves respect a true chef/grillmaster has many decisions to make when bring his entree to the table
Maestros, seriously?! How pedestrian. I'm surprised you also didn't include the Olive Garden, bobsmith. And 555 in Long Beach is a yawn. PS, I hope one of the people you've called out in your racist rant spits in your food.
Its sarcasim
It's mastros, not maestros. They cook steaks like every other steakhouse. These chefs and restaurants are constantly creating new flavors and changing the menu.
The 555 in long beach is a great steakhouse however.
How are your cattle doing?
Where is Aunt Jemima's nomination for the "Best Frozen Waffles" category?
No one cares cuz the average person does not have the money to eat at these places.
Maybe not on a regular basis, but once or twice a year on a special occasion?
9/10 Americans are scared to try anything different anyways. Fish? Good luck. If it isn't mcdonalds or pizza, they won't even try it.
What, you don't like the Olive Garden?
Making up statistics is fun...... 12 out of every 8 New Zealanders agree with me
but only if you drop a whole paycheck for two ...
such crass and snobbery!
Funny, Chef Boyardee was not even nominated. What a bogus award!
...but the most favorite are:
1. McDonalds
2. Burger King
3. Kentucky Fried Chicken
4. Pizza Hut
5. Taco Bell
Lol
Mom's!
Basphemy! You forgot IN N Out Burger
I could eat there 2 times per week.
Panda express too. We eat there almost 3 times a week
Or whenv feeling international, we can also dine and feel worldly at der Weinerschnitzel
I'm sure all of the restaurants listed are great, but the fact that none of them are outside of big cities makes the lost biased. Celebs and dignitaries flock to Geneva, IL to eat at Bien Trucha. The meat fact that it wasn't even nominated tells you that the list is biased.
They aren't always big city restaurants/chefs – one year Drew Araneo of Drew's Bayshore Bistro was a nominee and his food is absolutely amazing.
St. Helena, CA has a population of 5,907, hardly a big city.
try to get a reservation at Mustard some time.
Birmingham, Al is far from a big city and their Highlands Bar and Grill received 2nd place for outstanding restaraunt. several of these are high in cost, but not all.
This is the 6th straight year that Highlands has been nominated. The voting process(which is distinct from the nomination process) discriminates against top restaurants in less traveled to cities.
I do not trust these things. I believe that Eatocracy was bought by these restaurants.
Eat me.
Guess I should hang myself because I don't live in any of these cities.
Yes, might as well.
Sally, no!! So much to live for.
Find a local dive, and enjoy their special of the day. Suicide is never the answer to James Beard sparseness.
Never heard of these awards before, but a lot of these restaurants don't even show up on their cities Top Ten lists! Doesn't seem like it would give me a reason to dine at them if they won this.
Can always count on CNN commenters to be among the dumbest on the Interwebs. Always good for a laugh.
If you admit to not knowing what the James Beard awards are, then any ensuing commentary you make regarding restaurant quality are probably not going to have much credibility.
Definitely.
Ahem. Forgive my ignorance, but my point is still valid. Most of these restaurants do not end up at the top (or in some cases, at all) of local Top Ten lists. :-P
He could use some wig.