No, not literally.
Known as the Oscars of the food world, the James Beard Foundation Awards are presented annually to chefs & restaurants across the nation for distinction in their field. This year, Chicago is home to 27 James Beard nominees across 12 different categories.
Among the standout nominees is Alinea, which is really no surprise given their track record for success. Lost Lake, Imbibe magazine’s Cocktail Bar of the Year is up for another award as well. You’ve probably heard of a few of the others as well: Spiaggia, Next Restaurant, Boka, 42 grams, Grace, Acadia, and Sepia. Chicago isn’t messing around this year.
Here are this year’s nominees from the Windy City (via Eater Chicago).
Outstanding Restaurant:
- Alinea
Outstanding Chef:
- Tony Mantuano, Spiaggia
- Carrie Nahabedian, Naha
Best New Restaurant:
- The Blanchard
- Intro
Rising Star Chef of the Year:
- Tanya Baker, The Boarding House
- Edward Sura, Perennial Virant
- Jenner Tomaska, Next Restaurant
Outstanding Restaurateur:
- Kevin Boehm and Rob Katz, Boka Restaurant Group
Outstanding Bar Program:
- Lost Lake
Outstanding Pastry Chef:
- Meg Galus, Boka
Outstanding Wine Program:
- Sepia
Outstanding Service:
Outstanding Wine, Spirits or Beer Professional:
- Charles Joly, Crafthouse Cocktails
Outstanding Baker:
- Dave and Megan Miller, Baker Miller Bakery & Millhouse
Best Chef: Great Lakes:
- Jake Bickelhaupt, 42 grams
- Abraham Conlon, Fat Rice
- Curtis Duffy, Grace
- Paul Fehribach, Big Jones
- Phillip Foss, EL Ideas
- Beverly Kim and Johnny Clark, Parachute
- Ryan McCaskey, Acadia
- Iliana Regan, Elizabeth Restaurant
- Lee Wolen, Boka
- Erling Wu-Bower, Nico Osteria
- Andrew Zimmerman, Sepia
You can learn more about the James Beard Awards at jamesbeard.org/awards.