Spotlight on New York’s James Beard Award Nominees

The Oscars may be coming up this weekend, but for members of the restaurant industry, there’s no greater honor than receiving a James Beard Foundation Award.  Established in 1990, the JBFA’s recognize excellence and achievement in numerous culinary fields – from chefs and restaurateurs to food journalists, cookbook authors, wine curators and designers.  And while the actual winners won’t be announced until the spring, just being nominated officially grants recipients bragging rights for life.

Awards are bestowed on eateries all throughout North America, but you know we’ve got our eye on New York’s top contenders… so here’s the 411 on a few of the local chefs and restaurants in position to take home the big prize!

Best New Restaurant
Betony
Carbone
The Elm
Estela
Fish & Game
Uncle Boons
There are currently six New York spots in contention to make the shortlist for Best New Restaurant (twice as many as the second most honored city, San Francisco).  We’ve heard mixed reviews for Zak Pelaccio’s rustic Hudson Valley restaurant, Fish & Game, and while we adore Uncle Boons, the home-style Thai eatery might be too casual to nab the coveted medal.   Carbone is lovable red sauce Italian, but a red sauce joint nonetheless,  and while lovely, the small plates at Estela aren’t nearly as interesting as the wide-ranging wine list.  The Elm has the unfortunate distinction of being good (for Brooklyn), so our money is on Betony — Bryce Shuman’s Dill-perfumed Lobster Tail and Eamon Rockey’s refreshing Desert Shandy are two of the most memorable comestibles we’ve had all year.

Outstanding Bar Program
The Bar at the NoMad Hotel
The Dead Rabbit
Maison Premiere
We’re in total agreement with the awards committee on this one.  Order up to 30 inventive cocktails from menus tucked into Art Deco books at the glorious library bar at the NoMad (or hope to get handed a deck of “drink” cards, and let the bartender construct a tipple based on whatever images you select).  Bone up on the differences between Cups and Cobblers, Sours and Fizzes, Fixes and Daisies, and Flips, Possets and Nogs (or just get a pint of Ale) at The Dead Rabbit, which is half swinging speakeasy and half gruff Irish taproom.  Or spend a seductive evening with that special someone at Maison Premiere in Brooklyn, sipping emerald goblets of absinthe and slurping 60 different kinds of briny, glistening mollusks.  This will be a tough race for sure.

Outstanding Pastry Chef
Dominique Ansel, Dominique Ansel Bakery
Matt Lewis and Renato Poliafito, Baked
Christina Tosi, Momofuku
Jennifer Yee, Lafayette
Dominique Ansel has won this award before, but there’s no denying that this was the year of the Cronut.  Not that the other nominees aren’t entirely deserving; Jennifer Yee is responsible for supplying both the restaurant with plated desserts and the attached café with Croissants and Cannelles at Lafayette, the Baked boys’ Whoopie Pies are reason enough to head out to Red Hook, and Christina Tosi (a former recipient of Rising Star of the Year), introduced Compost Cookies and Crack Pie into the culinary lexicon.

Outstanding Restaurant
Hearth
Pearl Oyster Bar
wd~50
Nominees for this award serve as standard-bearers for consistent quality and excellence in food, atmosphere and service, and must have been in operation for at least 10 or more consecutive years.  Hearth is the perfect name for Marco Canora’s warm and welcoming East Village mainstay, Wyle Dufresne’s wd-50 ushered in the molecular gastronomy movement, and Pearl Oyster Bar makes one of the best Lobster Rolls around.  But in a city bursting at the seams with utterly extraordinary, long-running restaurants, we can’t help but feel that singling out these three seems just a tad random.

Rising Star Chef of the Year
Daniel Delaney, Delaney Barbecue
Malcolm Livingston II, wd~50
Eli Sussman, Mile End
Michael Toscano, Perla
Wow, wd-50 again?  We guess we’re going to have to schedule a revisit to see what magic Malcolm Livingston II is working in the kitchen.  Daniel Delaney is a smoked brisket savant, but his repertoire might prove a tad limited for the crowd at James Beard.  So it’s a toss-up between the two other meat-obsessed chefs; Eli Sussman and his nouveau Jewish cuisine (Duck Pastrami, Chicken Soup with Liver Dumplings), and Michael Toscano and his Italian, nose-to-tail fare (Beef Tongue with Treviso, Veal Head with Ribollita).

Best Chef: NYC
Jonathan Benno, Lincoln Ristorante
Fredrik Berselius, Aska
April Bloomfield, The Spotted Pig
Paul Carmichael, Má Pêche
Amanda Cohen, Dirt Candy
Dan Kluger, ABC Kitchen
Mark Ladner, Del Posto
Paul Liebrandt, The Elm
Anita Lo, Annisa
Carlo Mirarchi, Roberta’s
Seamus Mullen, Tertulia
Joe Ng, RedFarm
Alex Raij and Eder Montero, Txikito
César Ramirez, Chef’s Table at Brooklyn Fare
Masato Shimizu, 15 East
Justin Smillie, Il Buco Alimentari & Vineria
Alex Stupak, Empellón Cocina
Rich Torrisi and Mario Carbone, Carbone
Jonathan Waxman, Barbuto
Michael White, Marea
This category is dedicated to honoring the most talented toques in New York (there are separate awards for chefs in the Great Lakes region, as well as the Mid-Atlantic, Northwest, Southeast, etc).  And many of the contenders are frequent nominees, like Dan Kluger, April Bloomfield, Michael White, Mark Ladner, Cesar Ramirez, Jonathan Waxman and Carlo Mirarchi (Paul Liebrandt also received a nod last year for Corton).  But we’re really pulling for Dirt Candy’s Amanda Cohen, who made the culinary world stand up and take notice of vegetables.. and vegetables alone.  A far cry from rabbit food, you won’t miss the meat in Cohen’s thoughtful, intricately composed takes on Corn (Stone Ground Grits, Corn Cream, Huitlacoche, Tempura Poached Egg), Beets (Salt Roasted Beets, Beet Gnocchi, Whipped Coconut Galangal Cream), and even that humble cabbage, Broccoli (Smoked Broccoli Dogs, Broccoli Kraut, and Salt and Vinegar Broccoli Rabe).