A tip for future James Beard award winners: When you get up to accept your award, don't just thank your significant other. Say "I love you," the way chef Takashi Yagihashi of Tribute did when he accepted the American Express-sponsored award for best chef in the Midwest. The crowd loved it. They cooed. And future presenters can take a tip from Mario Batali: The crowd loves freebies. Batali tossed cigars into the front rows before presenting Aquavit's Marcus Samuelsson with the best chef in New York City award.
The annual award foodie-fest sparked a series of related events for the restaurant and food industry. Terrance Brennan hosted a party at his new Artisanal Cheese Center Saturday evening. On Sunday night Bon Appetit packed Noche for its Chefs Night Out party, where shots of Del Maguey mezcal were served in tiny terra cotta pots. It all culminated when the James Beard Foundation presented its annual awards at the Marriott Marquis.
The big winner of the night, chef and cookbook author Judy Rodgers of San Francisco's Zuni Cafe, swept with three awards by the end of the evening (she was farklempt by the end of the ceremony). Chef-hunk Eric Ripert of Le Bernardin was named All-Clad Cookware's outstanding chef, and L'Impero was awarded for outstanding restaurant design and named the year's best new restaurant.
Produced by M. Young Communcations' Melanie Young and Overland Entertainment, this year's event celebrated James Beard's 100th birthday. An Andy Warhol-esque backdrop of portraits of James Beard decorated the stage where the M.C. Swoosie Kurtz, attired in a saucy red dress, hosted the three-hour awards program. This year, the awards show was taped for an A&E special, to be aired June 28.
Following the ceremony, everyone headed one floor down, where more than 30 chefs cooked for the post-awards tasting reception. American cuisine—Beard is known as the "Dean of American Cooking"—was the predominant offering. A few restaurants took extra pains to create aesthetically interesting presentations. Chef Jerry Traunfeld of Herbfarm in Woodinville, Washington, placed three kinds of herb-based ice cream in mini cones in flower pots planted with the fresh herbs that flavored the dessert. Rocks, starfish and dried kelp underneath a sheet of Plexiglas decorated Trey Foshee of George's on the Cove's table, where sea urchin bruschetta
with a marinated onion salad was the featured dish. Daniel Boulud, cooking under the name of his Feast & Fetes catering firm rather than one of his three high-profile restaurants, displayed his dishes on a table covered with a Plexiglas checkerboard filled with wheatgrass and orange and yellow gerbera daisies. And Jimmy Schmidt of Detroit's Rattlesnake Club covered his table with moss and sprigs of viburnum to offset his plates of foie gras with three-pear salad.
The other notable New York winners for the evening was Daniel sommelier Jean-Luc Le Du, who took home the Sub-Zero Freezer Company outstanding wine service award, and City Harvest executive director Julia Erickson, who was honored as humanitarian of the year.
Following the awards and tasting feast, many headed to TriBeCa for the official after-party at Thalassa, where guests confronted more food—in case the two and a half hour tasting wasn't long enough to get to all 30 stations—including a lavish spread of Greek foods, wines and cheeses, and bubbly courtesy of Mionetto prosecco.
—Suzanne Ito
Read about last year's James Beard Foundation awards...
Read our Impresario profile of Melanie Young...
The annual award foodie-fest sparked a series of related events for the restaurant and food industry. Terrance Brennan hosted a party at his new Artisanal Cheese Center Saturday evening. On Sunday night Bon Appetit packed Noche for its Chefs Night Out party, where shots of Del Maguey mezcal were served in tiny terra cotta pots. It all culminated when the James Beard Foundation presented its annual awards at the Marriott Marquis.
The big winner of the night, chef and cookbook author Judy Rodgers of San Francisco's Zuni Cafe, swept with three awards by the end of the evening (she was farklempt by the end of the ceremony). Chef-hunk Eric Ripert of Le Bernardin was named All-Clad Cookware's outstanding chef, and L'Impero was awarded for outstanding restaurant design and named the year's best new restaurant.
Produced by M. Young Communcations' Melanie Young and Overland Entertainment, this year's event celebrated James Beard's 100th birthday. An Andy Warhol-esque backdrop of portraits of James Beard decorated the stage where the M.C. Swoosie Kurtz, attired in a saucy red dress, hosted the three-hour awards program. This year, the awards show was taped for an A&E special, to be aired June 28.
Following the ceremony, everyone headed one floor down, where more than 30 chefs cooked for the post-awards tasting reception. American cuisine—Beard is known as the "Dean of American Cooking"—was the predominant offering. A few restaurants took extra pains to create aesthetically interesting presentations. Chef Jerry Traunfeld of Herbfarm in Woodinville, Washington, placed three kinds of herb-based ice cream in mini cones in flower pots planted with the fresh herbs that flavored the dessert. Rocks, starfish and dried kelp underneath a sheet of Plexiglas decorated Trey Foshee of George's on the Cove's table, where sea urchin bruschetta
with a marinated onion salad was the featured dish. Daniel Boulud, cooking under the name of his Feast & Fetes catering firm rather than one of his three high-profile restaurants, displayed his dishes on a table covered with a Plexiglas checkerboard filled with wheatgrass and orange and yellow gerbera daisies. And Jimmy Schmidt of Detroit's Rattlesnake Club covered his table with moss and sprigs of viburnum to offset his plates of foie gras with three-pear salad.
The other notable New York winners for the evening was Daniel sommelier Jean-Luc Le Du, who took home the Sub-Zero Freezer Company outstanding wine service award, and City Harvest executive director Julia Erickson, who was honored as humanitarian of the year.
Following the awards and tasting feast, many headed to TriBeCa for the official after-party at Thalassa, where guests confronted more food—in case the two and a half hour tasting wasn't long enough to get to all 30 stations—including a lavish spread of Greek foods, wines and cheeses, and bubbly courtesy of Mionetto prosecco.
—Suzanne Ito
Read about last year's James Beard Foundation awards...
Read our Impresario profile of Melanie Young...
An Andy Warhol-esque backdrop of portraits of James Beard decorated the stage at the James Beard Foundation awards at the Marriott Marquis.
Chef Jerry Traunfeld of Herbfarm in Woodinville, Washington, served three kinds of herb-based ice creams at the tasting reception. The cones were placed in flower pots planted with the fresh herbs that flavored the ice cream.
Hugh McMahon carved portraits of James Beard out of watermelons.
Rocks, starfish and dried kelp underneath a sheet of Plexiglas decorated Trey Foshee of George's on the Cove's table. The San Diego chef served sea urchin bruschetta with a marinated onion salad.
