Television personality Alton Brown will host the 2012 James Beard Foundation Chef and Restaurant Awards, to be held in New York on May 7.
Brown won the Beard Foundation’s award for best TV food personality in 2011 for his Food Network show Good Eats. He also won an award from the foundation in 2003 for his first book, “I’m Just Here for the Food.”
This year’s gala ceremony, which will be held at Lincoln Center’s Avery Fisher Hall, celebrates the silver anniversary of the awards, which started as an intimate celebratory boat cruise around Manhattan in 1987.
This year’s theme is “25 Years of Food at its Best.”
Sometimes called the Oscars of the restaurant world, the James Beard Foundation Awards are considered by many in the fine-dining community to be among the most prestigious recognitions of excellence.
The award ceremony is followed by a reception catered by chefs from around the country. Confirmed for this year are:
• Sean Brock of McCrady’s and Husk in Charleston, S.C.
• Sanford D’Amato of Sanford Restaurant in Milwaukee
• Gary Danko of restaurant Gary Danko in San Francisco
• Paul Kahan of Blackbird and several other restaurants in Chicago
• Bob Kinkead of Kinkead’s in Washington, D.C.
• Michael Lomonaco of Porter House in New York
• Keith Luce of Luce & Hawkins in Jamesport, N.Y.
• Barbara Lynch and Collin Lynch of Menton and several other restaurants in Boston
• Nancy Oakes of Boulevard in San Francisco
• Bradley Ogden of Lark Creek Restaurant Group in San Francisco
• Vitaly Paley of Paley’s Place Bistro & Bar in Portland, Ore.
• Nora Pouillon of Restaurant Nora in Washington, D.C.
• Andrea Reusing of Lantern in Chapel Hill, N.C.
• Jimmy Schmidt of Morgan’s in the desert in La Quinta, Calif.
• Susan Spicer of Bayona in New Orleans
• Frank Stitt of Highlands Bar & Grill in Birmingham, Ala.
• Norman Van Aken of Tuyo in Miami
• Jonathan Waxman of Barbuto in New York
• Tre Wilcox of Marquee Grill in Dallas
• Alan Wong of Alan Wong’s in Honolulu
Pastries are being prepared by
• Sarabeth Levine of Sarabeth’s in New York
• Emily Luchetti of Waterbar in San Francisco
• Angela Pinkerton of Eleven Madison Park in New York
Last year’s awards were co-hosted by Top Chef head judge and chef-owner of the Craft and ’Wichcraft chains Tom Colicchio; TV personality and owner of Blue Ginger in Wellesley, Mass., Ming Tsai; and Traci de Jardins, chef-owner of Jardinière in San Francisco.
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Contact Bret Thorn at bret.thorn@penton.com.
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