March 14, 2018
The 2018 James Beard Foundation Restaurant and Chef Awards will take place May 7 at Lyric Opera of Chicago. The 2018 James Beard Media Awards, which honor those in the media who cover the culinary industry, will take place April 27 at Pier Sixty at Chelsea Piers in New York City. For the first time this year, the awards will be streamed live on Twitter.
UPDATE: Carla Hall will host the 2018 James Beard Foundation Restaurant and Chef Awards. Tamron Hall will host the 2018 James Beard Media Awards.
Here is the complete list of nominations for the James Beard Foundation Restaurant and Chef Awards.
2018 James Beard Foundation Restaurant and Chef Awards
Best New Restaurant (Presented by True Refrigeration®)
A restaurant opened in the calendar year before the award will be given that already displays excellence in food, beverage, and service, and that is likely to make a significant impact in years to come.
The Charter Oak
St. Helena, CA
Empellón Midtown
NYC
Felix Trattoria
Venice, CA
JuneBaby
Seattle
Kismet
Los Angeles
Outstanding Baker (Presented by Taylor Precision Products)
A chef or baker who prepares breads, pastries, or desserts in a retail bakery, and who serves as a national standard-bearer of excellence. Must have been a baker or pastry chef for at least five years.
Dianna Daoheung
Black Seed Bagels
NYC
Zachary Golper
Bien Cuit
Brooklyn, NY
Maura Kilpatrick
Sofra Bakery and Café
Cambridge, MA
Belinda Leong and Michel Suas
B. Patisserie
San Francisco
Alison Pray
Standard Baking Co.
Portland, ME
Greg Wade
Publican Quality Bread
Chicago
Outstanding Bar Program (Presented by Woodford Reserve Bourbon)
A restaurant or bar that demonstrates excellence in cocktail, spirits, and/or beer service.
Anvil Bar & Refuge
Houston
Bar Agricole
San Francisco
Clyde Common
Portland, OR
Cure
New Orleans
Kimball House
Decatur, GA
Trick Dog
San Francisco
Outstanding Chef (Presented by All-Clad Metalcrafters)
A working chef in America whose career has set national industry standards and who has served as an inspiration to other food professionals. Eligible candidates must have been working as a chef for the past five years.
Ashley Christensen
Poole’s Diner
Raleigh, NC
Gabrielle Hamilton
Prune
NYC
David Kinch
Manresa
Los Gatos, CA
Christopher Kostow
The Restaurant at Meadowood
St. Helena, CA
Donald Link
Herbsaint
New Orleans
Outstanding Pastry Chef (Presented by Lavazza)
A chef or baker who prepares desserts, pastries, or breads in a restaurant, and who serves as a national standard bearer of excellence. Must have been a pastry chef or baker for the past five years.
Kelly Fields
Willa Jean
New Orleans
Meg Galus
Boka
Chicago
Margarita Manzke
République
Los Angeles
Dolester Miles
Highlands Bar & Grill
Birmingham, AL
Diane Yang
Spoon and Stable
Minneapolis
Outstanding Restaurant (Presented by S.Pellegrino® Sparkling Natural Mineral Water)
A restaurant in the United States that serves as a national standard bearer of consistent quality and excellence in food, atmosphere, and service. Eligible restaurants must have been in operation 10 or more consecutive years.
Balthazar
NYC
Canlis
Seattle
Frasca Food and Wine
Boulder, CO
Highlands Bar & Grill
Birmingham, AL
Quince
San Francisco
Outstanding Restaurateur
A working restaurateur who sets high national standards in restaurant operations and entrepreneurship. Candidates must have been in the restaurant business for at least 10 years. Candidates must not have been nominated for a James Beard Foundation chef award in the past five years.
Kevin Boehm and Rob Katz
Boka Restaurant Group (Boka, GT Fish & Oyster, Girl & the Goat, and others)
Chicago
JoAnn Clevenger
Upperline
New Orleans
Ken Oringer
Uni, Little Donkey, Toro, and others
Boston
Caroline Styne
The Lucques Group (Lucques, a.o.c., Tavern, and others)
Los Angeles
Ellen Yin
High Street Hospitality Group (Fork, High Street on Market, High Street on Hudson, and others)
Philadelphia
Outstanding Service
A restaurant in operation five or more years that demonstrates high standards of hospitality and service.
Boka
Chicago
Saison
San Francisco
Zahav
Philadelphia
Zingerman’s Delicatessen
Ann Arbor, MI
Zuni Café
San Francisco
Outstanding Wine Program (Presented by Robert Mondavi Winery)
A restaurant in operation five or more years that serves as a standard bearer for excellence in wine service through a well-presented wine list, knowledgeable staff, and efforts to educate customers about wine.
a.o.c.
Los Angeles
Bacchanal
New Orleans
Benu
San Francisco
FIG
Charleston, SC
The Little Nell
Aspen, CO
Outstanding Wine, Spirits, or Beer Professional
A beer, wine, or spirits professional who has made a significant national impact on the restaurant industry.
Cathy Corison
Corison Winery
St. Helena, CA
Diane Flynt
Foggy Ridge Cider
Dugspur, VA
Miljenko Grgich
Grgich Hills Estate
Rutherford, CA
Steve Matthiasson
Matthiasson Wines
Napa, CA
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 an impressive talent and who is likely to make a significant impact on the industry in years to come.
Camille Cogswell
Zahav
Philadelphia
Clare de Boer
King
NYC
Sarah Rinkavage
Marisol
Chicago
Miles Thompson
Michael’s
Santa Monica, CA
Kevin Tien
Himitsu
Washington, D.C.
Best Chefs in America
Chefs who have set new or consistent standards of excellence in their respective regions. Eligible candidates may be from any kind of dining establishment and 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)
Andrew Brochu
Roister
Chicago
Abraham Conlon
Fat Rice
Chicago
Beverly Kim and Johnny Clark
Parachute
Chicago
David Posey and Anna Posey
Elske
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
Jeremiah Langhorne
The Dabney
Washington, D.C.
Cindy Wolf
Charleston
Baltimore
Best Chef: Midwest (IA, KS, MN, MO, NE, ND, SD, WI)
Karen Bell
Bavette La Boucherie
Milwaukee
Steven Brown
Tilia
Minneapolis
Justin Carlisle
Ardent
Milwaukee
Gavin Kaysen
Spoon and Stable
Minneapolis
Ann Kim
Young Joni
Minneapolis
Best Chef: New York City (Five Boroughs)
Amanda Cohen
Dirt Candy
Ignacio Mattos
Estela
Missy Robbins
Lilia
Brooklyn, NY
Alex Stupak
Empellón Midtown
Jody Williams
Buvette Gastrothèque
Best Chef: Northeast (CT, MA, ME, NH, NY STATE, RI, VT)
Karen Akunowicz
Myers + Chang
Boston
Tiffani Faison
Tiger Mama
Boston
Tony Messina
Uni
Boston
Cassie Piuma
Sarma
Somerville, MA
Benjamin Sukle
Oberlin
Providence
Best Chef: Northwest (AK, ID, MT, OR, WA, WY)
Edouardo Jordan
Salare
Seattle
Katy Millard
Coquine
Portland, OR
Bonnie Morales
Kachka
Portland, OR
Justin Woodward
Castagna
Portland, OR
Rachel Yang and Seif Chirchi
Joule
Seattle
Best Chef: South (AL, AR, FL, LA, MS, PR)
Vishwesh Bhatt
Snackbar
Oxford, MS
Nina Compton
Compère Lapin
New Orleans
Jose Enrique
Jose Enrique
San Juan, PR
Kristen Essig and Michael Stoltzfus
Coquette
New Orleans
Brad Kilgore
Alter
Miami
Slade Rushing
Brennan’s
New Orleans
Best Chef: Southeast (GA, KY, NC, SC, TN, WV)
Mashama Bailey
The Grey
Savannah, GA
Katie Button
Nightbell
Asheville, NC
Cassidee Dabney
The Barn at Blackberry Farm
Walland, TN
Rodney Scott
Rodney Scott’s BBQ
Charleston, SC
Andrew Ticer and Michael Hudman
Andrew Michael Italian Kitchen
Memphis
Best Chef: Southwest (AZ, CO, NM, OK, TX, UT)
Michael Fojtasek
Olamaie
Austin
Bryce Gilmore
Barley Swine
Austin
Steve McHugh
Cured
San Antonio
Martín Rios
Restaurant Martín
Santa Fe
Alex Seidel
Mercantile Dining & Provision
Denver
Best Chef: West (CA, HI, NV)
Michael Cimarusti
Providence
Los Angeles
Dominique Crenn
Atelier Crenn
San Francisco
Jeremy Fox
Rustic Canyon
Santa Monica, CA
Jessica Koslow
Sqirl
Los Angeles
Travis Lett
Gjelina
Venice, CA
2018 James Beard Foundation Who’s Who of Food & Beverage in America Inductees
These recipients will accept their awards at the James Beard Awards Gala on May 7 at Lyric Opera of Chicago.
Jody Adams
Chef/Owner, TRADE, Porto, and Saloniki
Boston
Lally Brennan and Ti Adelaide Martin
Co-Proprietors, Commander’s Palace
New Orleans
Allison Hooper
Co-Founder, Vermont Creamery
Websterville, VT
Daniel Johnnes
Wine Director, The Dinex Group
New York City, NY
The following honorees will accept their awards at the James Beard Awards Gala on May 7 at Lyric Opera of Chicago
2018 James Beard Foundation America’s Classics (Presented by TABASCO® Sauce)
Sun Wah
Chicago, IL
Owners: Kelly Cheng, Laura Cheng, and Michael Cheng
Galleria Umberto
Boston, MA
Owners: Paul Deuterio and Ralph Deuterio
Los Hernandez
Union Gap, WA
Owner: Felipe Hernandez
El Guero Canelo
Tucson, AZ
Owner: Daniel Contreras
Dong Phuong Bakery
New Orleans, LA
Owner: Linh Tran Garza
2018 James Beard Foundation Humanitarian of the Year
José Andrés
Multiple James Beard Award–Winning Chef; Owner, ThinkFoodGroup; Founder, World Central Kitchen
2018 James Beard Foundation Lifetime Achievement Award
Paula Wolfert
Multiple James Beard Award–Winning Author