The James Beard Foundation’s 2019 Award Winners!

Outstanding Restaurant Design: Design Icon | Best Chef: Northwest

Mid-century modern was a theme of this year’s ceremony, with the iconic Canlis taking the cake for Design Icon. Perched above Lake Union with breathtaking cityscape views, the fine dining gem is at once old-school and timeless. Not to mention the cuisine. Chef Brady Williams took the reins of the kitchen in 2015, followed by a Rising Star Chef nod in 2017 and a Best New Chef win from Food & Wine in 2018. Having confidently brought the Pacific Northwest tasting menu to new heights (in part by introducing Japanese flavors and techniques), this win is very much deserved.

Best New Restaurant

New York’s Frenchette is a masterpiece in the realm of restaurants, at once contemporary and steeped in iconic brasserie culture. The owners, Lee Hanson and Riad Nasr, are longtime comrades, having together run the city’s best brasserie kitchens as restaurateur Keith McNally’s star chefs. We waited patiently for the duo’s breakout restaurant, and it was indeed well worth the wait. Here, find stellar renditions on classic fare (think soft scrambled eggs with escargot and duck frites), paired with a trailblazing natural wine list from Jorge Riera, and service that’s as lively as it is kind. And then there’s the room itself: chic and elegant, with a hefty dose of cool.

Outstanding Chef

To say that Ashley Christensen has made a mark on Raleigh is an understatement. With a restaurant group spanning six unique concepts, Christensen’s culinary influence has extended beyond the city and across the nation. Her beloved spot, Poole’s Diner, is a modern American diner serving reimagined comfort food, that’s both innovative and seasonal. With daily chalkboard menus boasting dishes like fennel Caesar salad, mac au gratin, and coconut chess tart, Christensen brings true joy to diners far and wide.

Best Chef: Midwest

Chef Ann Kim’s signature brand of globally-inspired, wood-fired cooking is alive at Young Joni, a restaurant beloved by locals and visitors alike. Kim’s mastery as a chef is evident in a diverse menu that flexes across the board: inventive pizzas (“This Lamb is Your Lamb” and “Korean BBQ”); veggies like confit mushrooms with chestnut miso butter and a range of kimchi; fresh, textural salads; and proteins ranging from Skuna Bay salmon with braised leek and cashew cream to sweet-and-spicy pork spare ribs. Get yourself to Minneapolis, stat.

Best Chef: South

Located in the heart of Oxford, Mississippi, Snackbar is an overachiever in all the right ways. Billed as “Bubba Brasserie,” the cuisine culls from French bistro and North Mississippi cafe fare, utilizes house-made charcuterie and freshly shucked oysters, and incorporates Indian technique. That’s all thanks to Vishwesh Bhatt, who fuses flavors from near and far to craft intensely memorable dishes. There’s fried boudin balls, comprised of Cajun pork-rice sausage made in house; chat made of fried and fresh peas; steak frites with chimichurri, truffle-Parmesan frites, and Tabasco aioli; Royal Red Shrimp mac & cheese, and plenty more.

Best Chef: Southeast

The connection between chef Mashama Bailey and her post as chef-partner of The Grey cannot be understated: while she was born in the Bronx and raised in Queens, her mother hails from Georgia, and Bailey herself attended grammar school in Savannah. The seasoned chef, who learned how to cook from the women in her family, brought her familiar yet elevated approach to Southern cuisine to The Grey. It’s no wonder the result is at once soulful and refined, meaningful and delicious, regional and contemporary. To eat her fish purloo, smashed new potato, and foie & grits is to take note of—and delight in—where you are.

Outstanding Restaurant Design: 76 Seats and Over (Firm: Parts and Labor Design)

This Chicago stunner, helmed by the acclaimed Erling Wu-Bower (a James Beard-nominated chef himself) opened its doors only days before last year’s JBFA ceremony, garnering visits from some of the industry’s most talented players. And this year, it got the recognition it deserves for its impeccable airy design, all light wood with hints of tonal grey, lush greenery, and grey accents. Parts and Labor Design drew from the west coast’s mid-century modern architecture to evoke the California inspiration behind Wu-Bower’s cooking—and succeeded brilliantly.

Best New Restaurant Nominee

Outstanding Wine Program Nominee

Outstanding Wine Program Nominee

Rising Star Chef of the Year Nominee, Jonathan Yao

Best Chef: West Nominee, Jeremy Fox

Outstanding Restaurant Design: 75 Seats and Under Nominee (Firm: Roman and Williams)

Outstanding Restaurant Nominee

Outstanding Restaurant Design: 76 Seats and Over Nominee (Firm: Land and Sea Dept.)

Best Chef: Great Lakes Nominee, Diana Dávila

Outstanding Restaurateur Nominee, Hugh Acheson

Outstanding Wine Program Nominee

Outstanding Restaurateur Nominee, Ken Oringer

Best Chef: Northeast Nominee, Cassie Piuma

Outstanding Pastry Chef Nominee, Pichet Ong

Rising Star Chef of the Year Nominee, Alexander Hong

Outstanding Restaurant Nominee

Best Chef: Southwest Nominee, Bryce Gilmore

Outstanding Chef Nominee, Donald Link

Best Chef: Mid-Atlantic Nominee, Rich Landau

Best Chef: Mid-Atlantic Nominee, Cindy Wolf

Outstanding Service Nominee