The long list of James Beard Award Semifinalists was announced this morning, and Charleston has made a respectable showing.
There are a couple of returning nominees for Best Chef Southeast, including Craig Deihl of Cypress and Ken Vedrinski of Trattoria Lucca.
Sean Brock got nominated for the national category of Outstanding Chef. He joins some heavy hitters like David Chang, Gary Danko, Suzanne Goin, and Daniel Humm.
Interesting to note that Husk did not make the list for Best New Restaurant (Husk opened in 2010 and made the semifinals last year). The Macintosh made the list for Best New Restaurant, and Chef Jeremiah Bacon also made the list for Best Chef Southeast.
Here’s the full list of nominees for that category. Anybody you think is a shoo-in? I kind of think it’s Acheson’s year, what with his Top Chef exposure, new cookbook, and multiple nominations.
Best Chef: Southeast
Hugh Acheson, Five and Ten, Athens, GA
Billy Allin, Cakes & Ale, Decatur, GA
Jeremiah Bacon, The Macintosh, Charleston, SC
Tyler Brown, Capitol Grille at the Hermitage Hotel, Nashville, TN
Ashley Christensen, Poole’s, Raleigh, NC
Craig Deihl, Cypress, Charleston, SC
John Fleer, Canyon Kitchen at Lonesome Valley, Cashiers, NC
Damian Heath, Lot 12 Public House, Berkeley Springs, WV
Linton Hopkins, Restaurant Eugene, Atlanta
Vivian Howard, Chef & the Farmer, Kinston, NC
Scott Howell, Nana’s, Durham, NC
Anthony Lamas, Seviche, Louisville, KY
Edward Lee, 610 Magnolia, Louisville, KY
Joseph Lenn, The Barn at Blackberry Farm, Walland, TN
Daniel Lindley, St. John’s Restaurant, Chattanooga, TN
Ouita Michel, Holly Hill Inn, Midway, KY
Andrew Ticer and Michael Hudman, Andrew Michael Italian Kitchen, Memphis, TN
Aaron Vandemark, Panciuto, Hillsborough, NC
Ken Vedrinski, Trattoria Lucca, Charleston, SC
Tandy Wilson, City House, Nashville, TN
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