The James Beard Foundation has released its annual list of semifinalists for the Restaurant and Chef Awards. On the list are 13 North Carolina eateries and chefs, 9 of which are in or near the Triangle. The James Beard Awards are considered the highest awards in the food industry. The semifinalists in North Carolina are:
- Best New Restaurant -, Durham, NC
- Outstanding Restaurant - , Chapel Hill, NC
- Outstanding Pastry Chef - Phoebe Lawless, , Durham, NC
- Outstanding Wine Program - , Raleigh, NC
- Outstanding Wine, Spirits, or Beer Professional - Eric Solomon, 鈥� European Cellars, Charlotte, NC; Sean Lilly Wilson, , Durham, NC
- Rising Star Chef of the Year - Katie Button, , Asheville, NC
- Best Chef: Southeast - Ashley Christensen, , Raleigh, NC; Scott Crawford, , Cary, NC; Vivian Howard, , Kinston, NC; Scott Howell, , Durham, NC; Elliott Moss, , Asheville, NC; Aaron Vandemark, , Hillsborough, NC
A full list of nationwide nominees is available . While some of this year鈥檚 North Carolina nominees have been semifinalists in the past, chef Andrea Reusing of Lantern is the only one to have received a James Beard Award before. She was awarded the Best Chef: Southeast in 2011. Among those who were caught off guard by their nominations is Phoebe Lawless of Scratch, who reacted this way on Twitter after acknowledging the news:
Whaaa???? Wowee!鈥�: And congrats to for being a James Beard semifinalist for Outstanding Pastry Chef 鈥�
— Phoebe Lawless (@scratchdurham)
Each year in October, the James Beard Foundation receives nominations from all over the country for the prestigious awards (they had more than 44,000 this year). A committee then narrows the selection down to semifinalists, and finally over 600 judges nationwide 鈥� restaurant critics, food and wine editors, past James Beard Award recipients, and culinary educators 鈥� vote for the finalists and winners.
The Foundation will announce finalists on March 18 and the winners on May 3.
