The 2011 James Beard Awards

Foodies, rejoice! The 2011 James Beard Award winners have been announced.

Widely known as the American food industry's equivalent of music's Grammys and film's Oscars, there are plenty of interesting awards given out in all kinds of categories. They don't get as much press as those Hollywood-centric awards, of course, so you may have missed them last week.

Who was James Beard, you ask? Well, for starters, he was the host of the first cooking show on TV. More importantly, he was a prolific food writer and cook, and is thought of by many as the architect of modern "American" cuisine. Find out more about James Beard here.

You can download a whole list of the 2011 winners and see the nominees on the James Beard Foundation Awards website.

Here are the award categories (links go to a list of nominees):

• Book Awards (Amazon.com)


• Broadcast Media


• Design & Graphics


• Journalism


• Restaurant And Chef


• Who’s Who Of Food & Beverage In America


• America’s Classics


• Lifetime Achievement Award


• Humanitarian Award

Support Your Local "Best Chef"

It's fun to see who the Best Chef award went to in your area. I was pleased to see one of my favorite chefs honored (Isaac Becker from 112 Eatery in Minneapolis).

Here's a complete list of the nominees, with the winners in bold. If you can't get a reservation at a winner, try another nominee!

BEST CHEF: GREAT LAKES
Michael Carlson, Schwa, Chicago
Curtis Duffy, Avenues at the Peninsula, Chicago
Bruce Sherman, North Pond, Chicago
Paul Virant, Vie, Western Springs, IL
Alex Young, Zingerman's Roadhouse, Ann Arbor, MI

BEST CHEF: MID-ATLANTIC
Cathal Armstrong, Restaurant Eve, Alexandria, VA
Johnny Monis, Komi, Washington, D.C.
Peter Pastan, Obelisk, Washington, D.C.
Maricel Presilla, Cucharamama, Hoboken, NJ
Michael Solomonov, Zahav, Philadelphia

BEST CHEF: MIDWEST
Justin Aprahamian, Sanford, Milwaukee
Isaac Becker, 112 Eatery, Minneapolis
Colby Garrelts, Bluestem, Kansas City, MO
Tory Miller, L'Etoile, Madison, WI
Lenny Russo, Heartland, St. Paul, MN

BEST CHEF: NEW YORK CITY
Michael Anthony, Gramercy Tavern
April Bloomfield, The Spotted Pig
Wylie Dufresne, wd~50
Gabrielle Hamilton, Prune
Michael White, Marea

BEST CHEF: NORTHEAST
Tim Cushman, o ya, Boston
Krista Kern Desjarlais, Bresca, Portland, ME
Gerry Hayden, The North Fork Table & Inn, Southold, NY
Matt Jennings, La Laiterie, Providence
Tony Maws, Craigie On Main, Cambridge, MA
Eric Warnstedt, Hen of the Wood, Waterbury, VT

BEST CHEF: PACIFIC
Michael Cimarusti, Providence, Los Angeles
Christopher Kostow, The Restaurant at Meadowood, St. Helena, CA
Daniel Patterson, COI, San Francisco
Richard Reddington, Redd, Yountville, CA
Michael Tusk, Quince, San Francisco

BEST CHEF: NORTHWEST
Matt Dillon, Sitka & Spruce, Seattle
Christopher Israel, Grüner, Portland, OR
Andy Ricker, Pok Pok, Portland, OR
Ethan Stowell, Staple & Fancy, Mercantile, Seattle
Cathy Whims, Nostrana, Portland, OR

BEST CHEF: SOUTH
Zach Bell, Café Boulud, Palm Beach, FL
John Harris, Lilette, New Orleans
Chris Hastings, Hot and Hot Fish Club, Birmingham, AL
Tory McPhail, Commander's Palace, New Orleans
Stephen Stryjewski, Cochon, New Orleans

BEST CHEF: SOUTHEAST
Hugh Acheson, Five and Ten, Athens, GA
Craig Deihl, Cypress, Charleston, SC
John Fleer, Canyon Kitchen at Lonesome Valley, Cashiers, NC
Linton Hopkins, Restaurant Eugene, Atlanta
Edward Lee, 610 Magnolia, Louisville, KY
Andrea Reusing, Lantern, Chapel Hill, NC

BEST CHEF: SOUTHWEST
Bruce Auden, Biga on the Banks, San Antonio
Bryan Caswell, Reef, Houston
Saipin Chutima, Lotus of Siam, Las Vegas (tie)
Tyson Cole, Uchi, Austin, TX (tie)
Ryan Hardy, Montagna at the Little Nell, Aspen, CO