This morning, members of the food media gathered at the James Beard House in the West Village for the announcement of this year's James Beard Award nominees, the group that made the cut from 9,600-plus entries. These awards are the culinary equivalent of the Academy Awards. Yet unlike the Oscars, the public can purchase tickets ($450 per person; $400 for James Beard Foundation members) to the black-tie awards ceremony and gala reception (a walk-around tasting focusing on American artisanal cuisine) that will be held at Lincoln Center's Avery Fisher Hall on the evening of Sunday, June 8th.
Award categories vary – Outstanding Restaurant Graphics, anyone? – but the one that captures lots of attention is Outstanding Restaurant. Our surveyors agree that this year's nominees have terrific food, as they all ring with either a 26, 27 or 28 Food rating. Meanwhile, New Yorkers can be proud that two out of the five outstanding restaurant nominees are in NYC. (While we're on the subject of Gotham pride, how about gloating that NYC is the only city to have its own category for best chef, while the rest of the country is divided by region.) Here's the list:
Outstanding Restaurant Award Nominees
For this year's Best New Restaurant nominees, the Big Apple scored one out of five. Two of them (Central Michel Richard and Fearing's at the Ritz-Carlton) made New York Times critic Frank Bruni's list of the most intriguing new restaurants outside New York. And without further ado...
Best New Restaurant Award Nominees
- Anthos, NYC; Chef/Owner: Michael Psilakis, Owner: Donatella Arpaia
- Central Michel Richard, Washington, DC; Chef/Owner: Michel Richard
- Fearing's at the Ritz-Carlton, Dallas; Chef/Owner: Dean Fearing
- Osteria Mozza, Los Angeles; Chef: Matt Molina, Owners: Nancy Silverton, Mario Batali, Joseph Bastianich
- Osteria, Philadelphia; Chef/Owners: Marc Vetri, Jeff Michaud, Owner: Jeff Benjamin
To see the nominees in every category, go here.