James Beard Foundation Announces 2019 Nominees

James Beard Foundation Announces 2019 NomineesThe James Beard Foundation is proud to announce the nominees for the 2019 James Beard Awards. The nominees were announced today during a press conference and breakfast at Hugo’s by Hugo Ortega in Houston, co-hosted by Clare Reichenbach, CEO of the James Beard Foundation, and David Mincberg, chairman of Houston First.

Mincberg represented Houston at the event, speaking on behalf of the city and welcoming the Foundation and its CEO Clare Reichenbach, who made opening remarks and highlighted this year’s theme, “Good Food For GoodTM”. David Whitaker, president and CEO of Choose Chicago, the Awards’ host city, made key remarks and announced Regional Chef Nominees together with Reichenbach. Additionally, James Beard Foundation chief strategy officer Mitchell Davis and James Beard Award winner and chair of the Restaurant and Chef committee Anne Quatrano announced several categories of nominees. The event was streamed live online on the James Beard Foundation website and Twitter feed. James Beard Award winner Hugo Ortega, owner and executive chef of Hugo’s, prepared a breakfast for guests including pork, chicken, and vegetable tamales; zucchini, corn, and poblano quesadillas; pan dulce; red and green chilaquiles; gorditas; and breakfast tacos.

Nominees were announced in nearly 60 categories of the Foundation’s various awards programs, including Restaurant and Chef, Restaurant Design, and Media. A complete list of nominees can be found at the end of this release, as well as at jamesbeard.org/awards.

About the 2019 James Beard Awards

The 2019 James Beard Awards celebrations begin in New York City on Friday, April 26, 2019, with the James Beard Media Awards. The exclusive event honors the nation’s top cookbook authors, culinary broadcast producers and hosts, and food journalists and will take place at Pier Sixty at Chelsea Piers.

The events then move to Chicago, beginning with the Leadership Awards dinner on Sunday, May 5, 2019. The dinner, presented in association with Deloitte and hosted by Gail Simmons, will recognize honorees for their work in creating a more healthful, sustainable, and just food world. The James Beard Awards Gala will take place on Monday, May 6, 2019, at the Lyric Opera of Chicago, hosted by Jesse Tyler Ferguson. During the event, which is open to the public, awards for the Restaurant and Chef and Restaurant Design categories will be handed out, along with special achievement awards Humanitarian of the Year, Lifetime Achievement, Design Icon, and America’s Classics. A gala reception will immediately follow, featuring chefs and beverage professionals from across the country, including past JBF Award winners and many who are involved in the Foundation’s Impact Programs, from Smart Catch Seafood to Women’s Leadership programs and the James Beard Chefs Bootcamp for Policy and Change. The VIP Dinner chefs, those who cook a multi-course dinner and create an experience in the mezzanine boxes during the Awards show, will be chefs from the esteemed Union Square Hospitality Group.

This year’s theme, “Good Food For GoodTM” is synonymous with the James Beard Foundation’s mission. It is the simple summation of what the organization stands for, from unique and delicious dining experiences at the James Beard House and around the country, to scholarships, mentorships, and a variety of industry programs that educate and empower leaders in the food community. The Foundation has built a platform for chefs and asserted the power of gastronomy to drive behavior, culture, and policy change around food. With this theme, the annual Awards aim to bring attention not only to its deserving winners but to the Foundation’s overall mission as well.

Tickets to the May 6 Awards Gala and April 26 Media Awards dinner are on sale now at jamesbeard.org/awards/tickets. General public tickets are $500; James Beard Foundation member tickets are $425; VIP dinner options available upon request to the box office at 914-231-6180 or boxoffice@jamesbeard.org. Individual tickets for the Media Awards are $350; table for 10, $3,500. Both ceremonies will be broadcast live via the James Beard Foundation’s Twitter @beardfoundation and at jamesbeard.org/awards.

The 2019 James Beard Awards are proudly hosted by Choose Chicago and the Illinois Restaurant Association and presented in association with Chicago O’Hare and Midway International Airports and Magellan Corporation as well as the following partners: Premier Sponsors: All-Clad Metalcrafters, American Airlines, HMSHost, Lavazza, S.Pellegrino® Sparkling Natural Mineral Water ; Supporting Sponsors: Hyatt, National Restaurant Association™, Robert Mondavi Winery, Skuna Bay Salmon, TABASCO® Sauce, Valrhona, White Claw® Hard Seltzer, Windstar Cruises; Gala Reception Sponsors: Dogfish Head Craft Brewery, Ecolab, Front of the House®, Kendall College, with additional support from Chefwear, Loacker and VerTerra Dinnerware. Intersport is the Official Broadcast Partner of the 2019 James Beard Awards.

Established in 1990, the James Beard Awards recognize culinary professionals for excellence and achievement in their fields and further the Foundation’s mission to celebrate, nurture, and honor chefs and other leaders making America’s food culture more delicious, diverse, and sustainable for everyone. Each award category has an individual committee made up of industry professionals who volunteer their time to oversee the policies, procedures, and selection of judges for their respective Awards programs. All James Beard Award winners receive a certificate and a medallion engraved with the James Beard Foundation Awards insignia.

About the James Beard Foundation

The James Beard Foundation’s mission is to promote good food for good™. For more than 30 years, the James Beard Foundation has highlighted the centrality of food culture in our daily lives. Through the James Beard Awards, unique dining experiences at the James Beard House and around the country, scholarships, hands-on learning, and a variety of industry programs that educate and empower leaders in our community, the Foundation has built a platform for chefs and asserted the power of gastronomy to drive behavior, culture, and policy change around food. To that end, the Foundation has also created signature impact-oriented initiatives that include our Women’s Leadership Programs, aimed at addressing the gender imbalance in the culinary industry; advocacy training through our Chefs Boot Camp for Policy and Change; and the James Beard Foundation Leadership Awards, which shine a spotlight on successful change makers. The organization is committed to giving chefs and their colleagues a voice and the tools they need to make the world more sustainable, equitable, and delicious for everyone. For more information, please visit jamesbeard.org and follow @beardfoundation on InstagramTwitter, and Facebook.

 

 

2019 James Beard Foundation Awards Nominees

 

2019 James Beard Foundation Book Awards

For cookbooks and other non-fiction food- or beverage-related books that were published in the U.S.
in 2018. Winners will be announced on April 26, 2019.

 

The winner of the Book of the Year Award and the Cookbook Hall of Fame inductee will be announced on April 26, 2019.

 

American

Books with recipes focused on the cooking or foodways of regions or communities in the United States.

 

A Common Table: 80 Recipes and Stories from My Shared Cultures

Cynthia Chen McTernan

(Rodale)

 

Between Harlem and Heaven: Afro-Asian-American Cooking for Big Nights, Weeknights, and Every Day

JJ Johnson and Alexander Smalls

(Flatiron Books)

 

Sweet Home Café Cookbook: A Celebration of African American Cooking

Albert G. Lukas and Jessica B. Harris

(Smithsonian Books)

 

Baking and Desserts

Books with recipes focused on breads, pastries, desserts, and other treats.

 

Black Girl Baking: Wholesome Recipes Inspired by a Soulful Upbringing

Jerrelle Guy

(Page Street Publishing Co.)

 

Pie Squared: Irresistibly Easy Sweet & Savory Slab Pies

Cathy Barrow

(Grand Central Publishing)

 

SUQAR: Desserts & Sweets from the Modern Middle East

Greg Malouf and Lucy Malouf

(Hardie Grant Books)

 

Beverage

Books with or without recipes focused on beverages, such as cocktails, beer, wine, spirits, coffee, tea, or juices.

 

Apéritif: Cocktail Hour the French Way

Rebekah Peppler

(Clarkson Potter)

 

The Aviary Cocktail Book

Grant Achatz, Nick Kokonas, Micah Melton, Allen Hemberger, and Sarah Hemberger

(The Alinea Group)

 

Cocktail Codex

Alex Day, Nick Fauchald, and David Kaplan

(Ten Speed Press)

 

General

Books with recipes that address a broad scope of cooking, not just a single topic, technique, or region.

 

Everyday Dorie

Dorie Greenspan

(Rux Martin/Houghton Mifflin Harcourt)

 

Milk Street: Tuesday Nights

Christopher Kimball

(Little, Brown and Company)

 

Ottolenghi Simple

Yotam Ottolenghi

(Ten Speed Press)

 

Health and Special Diets

Books with recipes that focus on improving health and nutrition, or that address specific health issues, such as allergies or diabetes.

 

The Complete Diabetes Cookbook

Editors at America’s Test Kitchen

(America’s Test Kitchen)

 

Eat a Little Better

Sam Kass

(Clarkson Potter)

 

More with Less

Jodi Moreno

(Roost Books)

 

International

Books with recipes focused on food or cooking traditions of countries or regions outside of the United States.

 

Feast: Food of the Islamic World

Anissa Helou

(Ecco)

 

The Food of Northern Thailand

Austin Bush

(Clarkson Potter)

 

I Am a Filipino

Nicole Ponseca and Miguel Trinidad

(Artisan Books)

 

Photography

 

Season: Big Flavors, Beautiful Food

Nik Sharma

(Chronicle Books)

 

Tokyo New Wave

Andrea Fazzari

(Ten Speed Press)

 

Wild: Adventure Cookbook

Luisa Brimble

(Prestel Publishing)

 

Reference, History, and Scholarship

Includes manuals, guides, encyclopedias, and books that present research related to food or foodways.

 

Canned: The Rise and Fall of Consumer Confidence in the American Food Industry

Anna Zeide

(University of California Press)

 

Catfish Dream: Ed Scott’s Fight for His Family Farm and Racial Justice in the Mississippi Delta

Julian Rankin

(University of Georgia Press)

 

Creole Italian: Sicilian Immigrants and the Shaping of New Orleans Food Culture

Justin Nystrom

(University of Georgia Press)

 

Restaurant and Professional

Books written by a culinary professional or restaurant chef with recipes that may include advanced cooking techniques, using specialty ingredients and professional equipment, including culinary arts textbooks.

 

Chicken and Charcoal: Yakitori, Yardbird, Hong Kong

Matt Abergel

(Phaidon Press)

 

From the Earth: World’s Great, Rare and Almost Forgotten Vegetables

Peter Gilmore

(Hardie Grant Books)

 

Rich Table

Evan Rich and Sarah Rich

(Chronicle Books)

 

Single Subject

Books with recipes focused on a single or category of ingredients, a dish, or a method of cooking.

 

Bread & Butter: History, Culture, Recipes

Richard Snapes, Grant Harrington, and Eve Hemingway

(Quadrille Publishing)

 

Goat: Cooking and Eating

James Whetlor

(Quadrille Publishing)

 

Korean BBQ: Master Your Grill in Seven Sauces

Bill Kim

(Ten Speed Press)

 

Vegetable-Focused Cooking

Books on vegetable cookery with recipes including vegetarian or vegan cooking.

 

Almonds, Anchovies, and Pancetta: A Vegetarian Cookbook, Kind Of

Cal Peternell

(William Morrow Cookbooks)

 

Saladish

Ilene Rosen

(Artisan Books)

 

Vegetarian Viet Nam

Cameron Stauch

(W. W. Norton & Company)

 

Writing

Narrative nonfiction books including memoirs, culinary tourism, investigative journalism, food advocacy, and critical analysis of food and foodways for a general audience.

 

Buttermilk Graffiti: A Chef’s Journey to Discover America’s New Melting-Pot Cuisine

Edward Lee

(Artisan Books)

 

Hippie Food: How Back-to-the-Landers, Longhairs, and Revolutionaries Changed the Way We Eat

Jonathan Kauffman

(William Morrow)

 

Pasta, Pane, Vino: Deep Travels Through Italy’s Food Culture

Matt Goulding

(Harper Wave/Anthony Bourdain)

 

 

2019 James Beard Foundation Broadcast Media Awards

For radio, television broadcasts, podcasts, webcasts, and documentaries appearing in 2018. Winners will be announced on April 26, 2019.

 

Documentary

 

Chef Flynn

Airs on: Hulu, iTunes, and YouTube

 

Funke

Airs on: LA Film Festival and Vimeo

 

Modified

Airs on: Film festivals and Vimeo

 

Online Video, Fixed Location and/or Instructional

 

Handcrafted – How to Make Handmade Soba Noodles  

Airs on: Bon Appétit

 

Mad Genius – Crispy Cheese Sticks; Waffled Okonomiyaki; and Puff Pastry

Airs on: Food & Wine, YouTube, and Facebook

 

MasterClass – Dominique Ansel Teaches French Pastry Fundamentals

Airs on: MasterClass

 

Online Video, on Location

 

First We Feast’s Food Skills – Mozzarella Kings of New York

Airs on: YouTube

 

Kitchen Unnecessary – Fire Morels

Airs on: YouTube, Facebook

 

NPR Foraging – Eating Wild Sea Creatures; You Can Eat Dandelions; and The Hunt for Morels

Airs on: NPR

 

Outstanding Personality

 

Samin Nosrat

Salt Fat Acid Heat

Airs on: Netflix

 

Marcus Samuelsson

No Passport Required

Airs on: PBS

 

Molly Yeh

Girl Meets Farm

Airs on: Food Network

 

Outstanding Reporting

 

Deep Dive and Food for Thought, 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics

Reporter: David Chang

Airs on: NBC, NBCSN

 

In Real Life – Why You MUST Try Native American Cuisine

Reporter: Yara Elmjouie

Airs on: YouTube, AJ+

 

The Sporkful – Yewande Finds Her Super Power

Reporter: Dan Pashman

Airs on: Stitcher

 

Podcast

 

Copper & Heat – Be a Girl

Airs on: Copper & Heat, iTunes, Spotify, and Stitcher

 

The Feed – Paletas and Other Icy Treats

Airs on: PodcastOne

 

Racist Sandwich – Erasing Black Barbecue

Airs on: iTunes, Racist Sandwich, and Stitcher

 

Radio Show

 

California Foodways – Providing a Taste of Oaxaca to Central Valley; Can Ag and Wildlife Co-Exist? Rice Farmers Think So; and Frozen Burrito Royalty in the Central Valley

Airs on: KQED, California Foodways

 

The Food Chain – Raw Grief and Widowed

Airs on: BBC World Service

 

KCRW’s Good Food – Remembering Jonathan Gold

Airs on: KCRW

 

Special (on TV or Online)

 

Anthony Bourdain: Explore Parts Unknown – Little Los Angeles

Airs on: CNN, Explore Parts Unknown, Roads & Kingdoms

 

Spencer’s BIG Holiday

Airs on: Gusto

 

Taste Buds – Chefsgiving

Airs on: ABC

 

Television Program, in Studio or Fixed Location

 

Barefoot Contessa: Cook Like a Pro – Mary Poppins Show

Airs on: Food Network

 

Good Eats: Reloaded – Steak Your Claim

Airs on: Cooking Channel

 

Pati’s Mexican Table – Tijuana: Stories from the Border

Airs on: WETA Washington; Distributed Nationally by American Public Television

 

Television Program, on Location

 

The Migrant Kitchen – Man’oushe

Airs on: KCET and Link TV

 

Salt Fat Acid Heat – Salt

Airs on: Netflix

 

Ugly Delicious – Fried Chicken

Airs on: Netflix

 

Visual and Technical Excellence

 

Anthony Bourdain: Explore Parts Unknown

Yuki Aizawa, Sarah Hagey, Nathalie Karouni, Kate Kunath and August Thurmer

Airs on: CNN, Explore Parts Unknown, Roads & Kingdoms

 

Chef’s Table

Will Basanta, Adam Bricker, and Danny O’Malley

Airs on: Netflix

 

From The Wild – Season 4

Kevin Kossowan

Airs on: Vimeo

 

 

2019 James Beard Foundation Journalism Awards

For articles published in English in 2018. Winners will be announced on April 26, 2019.

 

Publication of the Year will be decided by members of the James Beard Awards Journalism Committee and will be announced at the awards ceremony.

 

Columns

 

America’s Best Worst Cook: “Hi, I’m America’s Best Worst Cook”; “Dear Chefs, Will Eating This Kill Me?” and “How to Roast a Chicken? The Answers Are Horrifying.”

JJ Goode

Taste

 

Local Fare: “The Question of Dinner”; “Dixie Vodka”; and “Folk Witness”

John T. Edge

Oxford American

 

What We Talk About When We Talk About American Food: “The Pickled Cucumbers That Survived the 1980s AIDS Epidemic”; “A Second Look at the Tuna Sandwich’s All-American History”; and “Freedom and Borscht for Ukrainian-Jewish Émigrés”

Mari Uyehara

Taste

 

Craig Claiborne Distinguished Restaurant Review Award

 

Counter Intelligence: “The Hearth & Hound, April Bloomfield’s New Los Angeles Restaurant, Is Nothing Like a Gastropub”; “There’s Crocodile and Hog Stomach, but Jonathan Gold Is All About the Crusty Rice at Nature Pagoda”; and “At Middle Eastern Restaurants, It All Starts with Hummus. Jonathan Gold says Bavel’s Is Magnificent”

Jonathan Gold

Los Angeles Times

 

“The Fire Gods of Washington, D.C.”; “David Chang’s Majordomo Is No Minor Feat”; and “North America’s Best Cantonese Food Is in Canada”

Bill Addison

Eater

 

“The Four Seasons Returns. But Can It Come Back?” “Why David Chang Matters”; and “A Celebration of Black Southern Food, at JuneBaby in Seattle”

Pete Wells

The New York Times

 

Dining and Travel

 

Chau Down: “A New Orleans Food Diary”; “A Portland Food Diary”; and “A Chicago Food Diary”

Danny Chau

The Ringer

 

“Dim Sum Is Dead, Long Live Dim Sum”

Max Falkowitz

Airbnb Magazine

 

“Many Chinas, Many Tables”

Jonathan Kauffman and Team

San Francisco Chronicle

 

Feature Reporting

 

“Big in Japan”

Tejal Rao

The New York Times Magazine

 

“A Kingdom from Dust”

Mark Arax

The California Sunday Magazine

 

“Shell Game: Saving Florida’s Oysters Could Mean Killing a Way of Life”

Laura Reiley and Eve Edelheit

Tampa Bay Times

 

Food Coverage in a General Interest Publication

 

New York Magazine

Robin Raisfeld, Rob Patronite, Maggie Bullock, and the Staff of New York Magazine

 

Roads & Kingdoms

Nathan Thornburgh, Matt Goulding, Anup Kaphle, and the Roads & Kingdoms Team

 

T: The New York Times Style Magazine

Kurt Soller, Hanya Yanagihara, and the Staff of T Magazine

 

Foodways

 

“Back to Where It All Began: I Had Never Eaten in Ghana Before. But My Ancestors Had.”

Michael W. Twitty

Bon Appétit

 

“A Hunger for Tomatoes”

Shane Mitchell

The Bitter Southerner

 

“What is Northern Food?”

Steve Hoffman

Artful Living

 

Health and Wellness

 

“Clean Label’s Dirty Little Secret”

Nadia Berenstein

The New Food Economy

 

“The Last Conversation You’ll Ever Need to Have About Eating Right” and “The Last Conversation You’ll Need to Have on Eating Right: The Follow-ups”

Mark Bittman and David L. Katz

New York Magazine / Grub Street

 

“‘White People Food’ Is Creating An Unattainable Picture Of Health”

Kristen Aiken

HuffPost

 

Home Cooking

 

“Melissa Clark’s Thanksgiving”

Melissa Clark

The New York Times

 

“The Subtle Thrills of Cold Chicken Salad”

Cathy Erway

Taste

 

“Top Secret Ingredients”

Kathleen Purvis

Garden & Gun

 

Innovative Storytelling

 

“In Search of Water-Boiled Fish”

Angie Wang

Eater

 

“100 Most Jewish Foods”

Alana Newhouse

Tablet Magazine

 

“What’s in a Food Truck?”

Bonnie Berkowitz, Seth Blanchard, Aaron Steckelberg, and Monica Ulmanu

The Washington Post

 

Investigative Reporting

 

“‘It’s Not Fair, Not Right’: How America Treats Its Black Farmers”

Debbie Weingarten and Audra Mulkern

The Guardian and the Economic Hardship Reporting Project

 

“A Killing Season”

Boyce Upholt

The New Republic

 

“Victims Blame FDA for Food-Recall Failures”

Christine Haughney Dare-Bryan

Politico

 

Jonathan Gold Local Voice Award

 

“Storied Ovens”; “Food Outside the U.S. Open Gates”; and “A New Destination for Chinese Food: Not Flushing, but Forest Hills”

Max Falkowitz

The New York Times; Plate Magazine

 

“My Dinner at the Playboy Club”; “Curry and Roti Destination Singh’s Lights Up Queens”; and “Where New Yorkers Actually Eat in Times Square”

Robert Sietsema

Eater NY

 

“Yes Indeed, Lord: Queen’s Cuisine, Where Everything Comes from the Heart”; “Top 10 New Orleans Restaurants for 2019”; and “Sexual Harassment Allegations Preceded Sucré Co-Founder Tariq Hanna’s Departure”

Brett Anderson

Nola.com | The Times-Picayune

 

M.F.K. Fisher Distinguished Writing Award

 

“A Kingdom from Dust”

Mark Arax

The California Sunday Magazine

 

“The Poet’s Table”

Mayukh Sen

Poetry Foundation

 

“What Is Northern Food?”

Steve Hoffman

Artful Living

 

Personal Essay, Long Form

 

“I Made the Pizza Cinnamon Rolls from Mario Batali’s Sexual Misconduct Apology Letter”

Geraldine DeRuiter

Everywhereist.com

 

“Need to Find Me? Ask My Ham Man”

Catherine Down

The New York Times

 

“Writing an Iranian Cookbook in an Age of Anxiety”

Naz Deravian

The Atlantic

 

Personal Essay, Short Form

 

“Doritos is Developing Lady-Friendly Chips Because You Should Never Hear a Woman Crunch”

Maura Judkis

The Washington Post

 

“I’m a Chef with Terminal Cancer. This Is What I’m Doing with the Time I Have Left”

Fatima Ali

Bon Appétit

 

“Savoring the School Lunch”

Rebekah Denn

The Seattle Times

 

Profile

 

“Heaven Was a Place in Harlem”

Vince Dixon

Eater

 

“The Short and Brilliant Life of Ernest Matthew Mickler”

Michael Adno

The Bitter Southerner

 

“‘You Died’: The Resurrection of a Cook in the Heart of SF’s Demanding Culinary Scene”

Jonathan Kauffman

San Francisco Chronicle

 

Wine, Spirits, and Other Beverages

 

“The Gulp War”

Dave Stroup

Eater

 

“‘Welch’s Grape Jelly with Alcohol’: How Trump’s Horrific Wine Became the Ultimate Metaphor for His Presidency”

Corby Kummer

Vanity Fair

 

“Why Is the Wine World So Un-Woke?”

Jon Bonné

Punch

 

 

2019 James Beard Foundation Outstanding Restaurant Design Awards

Winners will be announced on May 6, 2019.

 

75 Seats and Under

For the best restaurant design or renovation in North America since January 1, 2016.

 

  • Firms: Heliotrope Architects and Price Erickson Interior Design

Project: Willmott’s Ghost, Seattle

 

  • Firm: Roman and Williams

Project: La Mercerie, NYC

 

  • Firm: Studio Writers

Project: Atomix, NYC

 

76 Seats and Over

For the best restaurant design or renovation in North America since January 1, 2016.

 

  • Firm: Land and Sea Dept.

Project: Lonesome Rose, Chicago

 

  • Firm: studio razavi architecture

Project: Boqueria, NYC

 

  • Firm: Parts and Labor Design

Project: Pacific Standard Time, Chicago

 

Other Eating and Drinking Places

Eligible establishments include bars, quick service and fast casual restaurants, diners, counter service, food trucks and food halls, ice cream and cake shops, pop-ups, take-out counters, and coffee bars and shops completed or renovated since January 1, 2016.

 

  • Firm: AvroKO

Project: China Live, San Francisco

 

  • Firm: Schwartz and Architecture (S^A)

Project: El Pípila, San Francisco

 

  • Firm: Summer Ops

Project: Island Oyster, NYC

 

Design Icon

 

Canlis

Seattle

 

 

2019 James Beard Foundation Restaurant and Chef Awards

Winners will be announced on May 6, 2019.

 

Best New Restaurant

A restaurant opened in 2018 that already demonstrates excellence in cuisine and hospitality, and that is likely to make a significant impact in years to come.

  • Angler, San Francisco
  • Atomix, NYC
  • Bavel, Los Angeles
  • Frenchette, NYC
  • Majordomo, Los Angeles

Outstanding Baker

A pastry chef or baker who demonstrates exceptional skill, integrity, and character in the preparation of desserts, pastries, or breads served in a retail bakery. Must have been working as a pastry chef or baker for the past five years.

  • Zachary Golper, Bien Cuit, NYC
  • Maura Kilpatrick, Sofra Bakery and Café, Cambridge, MA
  • Lisa Ludwinski, Sister Pie, Detroit
  • Avery Ruzicka, Manresa Bread, Los Gatos, CA
  • Greg Wade, Publican Quality Bread, Chicago

Outstanding Bar Program

A restaurant or bar that demonstrates exceptional care and skill in the selection, preparation, and serving of cocktails, spirits, and/or beer.

  • Bar Agricole, San Francisco
  • Dead Rabbit, NYC
  • Kimball House, Decatur, GA
  • Lost Lake, Chicago
  • Ticonderoga Club, Atlanta

Outstanding Chef (Presented by All-Clad Metalcrafters)

A chef who sets high culinary standards and who has served as a positive example for other food professionals. Must have been working as a chef for the past five years.

  • Ashley Christensen, Poole’s Diner, Raleigh, NC
  • David Kinch, Manresa, Los Gatos, CA
  • Corey Lee, Benu, San Francisco
  • Donald Link, Herbsaint, New Orleans
  • Marc Vetri, Vetri Cucina, Philadelphia

Outstanding Pastry Chef (Presented by Lavazza)

A pastry chef or baker who demonstrates exceptional skill, integrity, and character in the preparation of desserts, pastries, or breads served in a restaurant. Must have been working as a pastry chef or baker for the past five years.

  • Juan Contreras, Atelier Crenn, San Francisco
  • Kelly Fields, Willa Jean, New Orleans
  • Meg Galus, Boka, Chicago
  • Margarita Manzke, République, Los Angeles
  • Pichet Ong, Brothers and Sisters, Washington, D.C.

Outstanding Restaurant (Presented by S.Pellegrino® Sparkling Natural Mineral Water)

A restaurant that demonstrates consistent excellence in food, atmosphere, service, and operations. Must have been in business 10 or more consecutive years.

  • Balthazar, NYC
  • FIG, Charleston, SC
  • Jaleo, Washington, D.C.
  • Quince, San Francisco
  • Zahav, Philadelphia

Outstanding Restaurateur (Presented by Magellan Corporation)

A restaurateur who demonstrates creativity in entrepreneurship and integrity in restaurant operations. Must have been in the restaurant business for at least 10 years. Must not have been nominated for a James Beard Foundation chef award in the past five years.

 

  • Hugh Acheson, Atlanta (Empire State South, Five & Ten, The National, and others)
  • Kevin Boehm and Rob Katz, Boka Restaurant Group, Chicago (Boka, Girl & the Goat, Momotaro, and others)
  • JoAnn Clevenger, Upperline, New Orleans
  • Ken Oringer, Boston (Little Donkey, Toro, Uni, and others)
  • Alex Raij and Eder Montero, NYC (La Vara, Txikito, Saint Julivert Fisherie, and others)
  • Ellen Yin, High Street Hospitality Group, Philadelphia (Fork, High Street on Market, High Street on Hudson)

 

Outstanding Service

A restaurant in operation for five or more years that demonstrates consistency and exceptional thoughtfulness in hospitality and service.

 

  • Brigtsen’s, New Orleans
  • Canlis, Seattle
  • Frasca Food and Wine, Boulder, CO
  • Saison, San Francisco
  • Swan Oyster Depot, San Francisco
  • Zingerman’s Roadhouse, Ann Arbor, MI

 

Outstanding Wine Program (Presented by Robert Mondavi Winery)

A restaurant or bar that demonstrates excellence in wine service through a carefully considered wine list and a well-informed approach to helping customers choose and drink wine.

  • Bacchanal, New Orleans
  • Benu, San Francisco
  • Miller Union, Atlanta
  • Night + Market, Los Angeles
  • Spiaggia, Chicago

Outstanding Wine, Spirits, or Beer Producer

A beer, wine, or spirits producer who demonstrates consistency and exceptional skill in his or her craft.

 

  • Cathy Corison, Corison Winery, St. Helena, CA
  • Ann Marshall and Scott Blackwell, High Wire Distilling Co., Charleston, SC
  • Steve Matthiasson, Matthiasson Wines, Napa, CA
  • Rob Tod, Allagash Brewing Company, Portland, ME
  • Lance Winters, St. George Spirits, Alameda, CA

 

Rising Star Chef of the Year (Presented by S.Pellegrino® Sparkling Natural Mineral Water)

A chef age 30 or younger who displays exceptional talent, character, and leadership ability, and who is likely to make a significant impact in years to come.

  • Ana Castro, Coquette, New Orleans
  • Alisha Elenz, MFK, Chicago
  • Alexander Hong, Sorrel, San Francisco
  • Jesse Ito, Royal Izakaya, Philadelphia
  • Kwame Onwuachi, Kith and Kin, Washington, D.C.
  • Jonathan Yao, Kato, Los Angeles

Best Chefs

Chefs who set high culinary standards and also demonstrate integrity and admirable leadership skills in their respective regions. A nominee may be from any kind of dining establishment but must have been working as a chef for at least five years, with the three most recent years spent in the region.

 

Best Chef: Great Lakes (IL, IN, MI, OH)

  • Diana Dávila, Mi Tocaya Antojería, Chicago
  • Jason Hammel, Lula Café, Chicago
  • Beverly Kim and Johnny Clark, Parachute, Chicago
  • David Posey and Anna Posey, Elske, Chicago
  • Noah Sandoval, Oriole, Chicago
  • Lee Wolen, Boka, Chicago

Best Chef: Mid-Atlantic (D.C., DE, MD, NJ, PA, VA)

 

  • Amy Brandwein, Centrolina, Washington, D.C.
  • Tom Cunanan, Bad Saint, Washington, D.C.
  • Rich Landau, Vedge, Philadelphia
  • Cristina Martinez, South Philly Barbacoa, Philadelphia
  • Cindy Wolf, Charleston, Baltimore

 

Best Chef: Midwest (IA, KS, MN, MO, NE, ND, SD, WI)

  • Michael Corvino, Corvino Supper Club & Tasting Room, Kansas City, MO
  • Michael Gallina, Vicia, St. Louis
  • Ann Kim, Young Joni, Minneapolis
  • Jamie Malone, Grand Café, Minneapolis
  • Christina Nguyen, Hai Hai, Minneapolis

Best Chef: New York City (Five Boroughs)

  • Sean Gray, Momofuku Ko
  • Brooks Headley, Superiority Burger
  • Daniela Soto-Innes, Atla
  • Alex Stupak, Empellón Midtown
  • Jody Williams and Rita Sodi, Via Carota

Best Chef: Northeast (CT, MA, ME, NH, NY State, RI, VT)

  • Tiffani Faison, Tiger Mama, Boston
  • James Mark, North, Providence
  • Tony Messina, Uni, Boston
  • Cassie Piuma, Sarma, Somerville, MA
  • Benjamin Sukle, Oberlin, Providence

Best Chef: Northwest (AK, ID, MT, OR, WA, WY)

 

  • Peter Cho, Han Oak, Portland, OR
  • Katy Millard, Coquine, Portland, OR
  • Brady Williams, Canlis, Seattle
  • Justin Woodward, Castagna, Portland, OR
  • Rachel Yang and Seif Chirchi, Joule, Seattle

 

Best Chef: South (AL, AR, Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, FL, LA, MS)

  • Vishwesh Bhatt, Snackbar, Oxford, MS
  • Jose Enrique, Jose Enrique, San Juan, PR
  • Kristen Essig and Michael Stoltzfus, Coquette, New Orleans
  • Slade Rushing, Brennan’s, New Orleans
  • Isaac Toups, Toups’ Meatery, New Orleans

Best Chef: Southeast (GA, KY, NC, SC, TN, WV)

 

  • Mashama Bailey, The Grey, Savannah, GA
  • Katie Button, Cúrate, Asheville, NC
  • Cassidee Dabney, The Barn at Blackberry Farm, Walland, TN
  • Ryan Smith, Staplehouse, Atlanta
  • Andrew Ticer and Michael Hudman, Andrew Michael Italian Kitchen, Memphis

 

Best Chef: Southwest (AZ, CO, NM, OK, TX, UT)

  • Charleen Badman, FnB, Scottsdale, AZ
  • Kevin Fink, Emmer & Rye, Austin
  • Michael Fojtasek, Olamaie, Austin
  • Bryce Gilmore, Barley Swine, Austin
  • Steve McHugh, Cured, San Antonio

Best Chef: West (CA, HI, NV)

  • Michael Cimarusti, Providence, Los Angeles
  • Jeremy Fox, Rustic Canyon, Santa Monica, CA
  • Jessica Koslow, Sqirl, Los Angeles
  • Travis Lett, Gjelina, Venice, CA
  • Joshua Skenes, Saison, San Francisco

 

2019 James Beard Foundation America’s Classics

 

Pho 79

Garden Grove, CA

Owners: Tong Trần and Liễu Trần

 

Jim’s Steak & Spaghetti House

Huntington, WV

Owners: Jimmie Carder, Larry Tweel, and Ron Tweel

 

A&A Bake & Double Roti Shop

Brooklyn, NY

Owners: Noel and Geeta Brown

 

Sehnert’s Bakery & Bieroc Café

McCook, NE

Owners: Matt and Shelly Sehnert

 

Annie’s Paramount Steakhouse

Washington, D.C.

Owner: Paul Katinas

 

2019 James Beard Foundation Humanitarian of the Year

 

The Giving Kitchen

Non-profit that provides emergency assistance to food service workers through financial support and a network of community resources.

 

2019 James Beard Foundation Lifetime Achievement Award

 

Patrick O’Connell

Multiple James Beard Award–Winning Chef; Chef & Owner, The Inn at Little Washington in Washington, VA