James Beard Foundation Announces Nominees For 2016 Awards

Today, the James Beard Foundation announced the nominees for this year's awards, a step that whittles down the large roster of semifinalists released about a month ago to a smaller but still pretty sizable list. The winners won't be announced until the gala on May 2 in Chicago, but making it this far along is already enough for a chef to get some attention.

The full list is below, but here are some musings from Tasting Table's editors:

Both Angela Dimayuga at Mission Chinese Food and Daniela Soto-Innes of Cosme receive the nominations for restaurants attached to much more familiar chef names (Danny Bowien and Enrique Olvera)—a good reminder that it takes a village to build a great restaurant. Another example of that is Alex Bois at High Street on Hudson in New York City and on Market in Philadelphia, who is just one chef on an all-star team that includes Eli Kulp, also a nominee. And finally, is anyone else surprised that all of the midwest nominees are from Chicago?

Share your thoughts with us on Twitter @TastingTable.

Check out the list of chefs and restaurants below and click here for the nominees in restaurant design, cookbooks, wine and other categories.

Best New Restaurant

A restaurant opened in the calendar year before the award will be given that already displays excellence in food, beverage, and service, and that is likely to make a significant impact in years to come.

Death & Taxes, Raleigh, NC

Launderette, Austin

Liholiho Yacht Club, San Francisco

Shaya, New Orleans

Staplehouse, Atlanta

Wildair, NYC

Outstanding Baker

A chef or baker who prepares breads, pastries or desserts in a retail bakery, and who serves as a national standard-bearer of excellence. Must have been a baker or pastry chef for at least five years.

Joanne Chang, Flour Bakery + Café, Boston

Mark Furstenberg, Bread Furst, Washington, D.C.

Zachary Golper, Bien Cuit, Brooklyn, NY

Belinda Leong and Michel Suas, B. Patisserie, San Francisco

William Werner, Craftsman and Wolves, San Francisco

Outstanding Chef

A working chef in America whose career has set national industry standards and who has served as an inspiration to other food professionals. Eligible candidates must have been working as a chef for the past five years.

Sean Brock, Husk, Nashville

Suzanne Goin, Lucques, Los Angeles

Donald Link, Herbsaint, New Orleans

Michael Solomonov, Zahav, Philadelphia

Michael Tusk, Quince, San Francisco

Outstanding Pastry Chef

A chef or baker who prepares desserts, pastries or breads in a restaurant, and who serves as a national standard bearer of excellence. Must have been a pastry chef or baker for the past five years.

Meg Galus, Boka, Chicago

Maura Kilpatrick, Oleana, Cambridge, MA

Dolester Miles, Highlands Bar & Grill, Birmingham, AL

Dahlia Narvaez, Osteria Mozza, Los Angeles

Ghaya Oliveira, Daniel, NYC

Jennifer Yee, Lafayette, NYC

Outstanding Restaurant

A restaurant in the United States that serves as a national standard bearer of consistent quality and excellence in food, atmosphere and service. Eligible restaurants must have been in operation 10 or more consecutive years.

Alinea, Chicago

Frasca Food & Wine, Boulder, CO

Highlands Bar and Grill, Birmingham, AL

Momofuku Noodle Bar, NYC

The Spotted Pig, NYC

Outstanding Restaurateur

A working restaurateur who sets high national standards in restaurant operations and entrepreneurship. Candidates must have been in the restaurant business for at least 10 years. Candidates must not have been nominated for a James Beard Foundation chef award in the past five years.

Kevin Boehm and Rob Katz, Boka Restaurant Group, Chicago (Boka, Girl & the Goat, Momotaro, Swift & Sons, and others)

Ken Friedman, NYC (The Spotted Pig, The Breslin, Tosca Café)

Michael Mina, Mina Restaurants, San Francisco (Michael Mina, Bourbon Steak, RN74, and others)

Cindy Pawlcyn, Napa, CA (Mustards Grill, Cindy's Backstreet Kitchen, Cindy's Waterfront at the Monterey Bay Aquarium)

Stephen Starr, Starr Restaurants, Philadelphia (Serpico, The Dandelion, Talula's Garden, and others)

Rising Star Chef of the Year

A chef age 30 or younger who displays an impressive talent and who is likely to make a significant impact on the industry in years to come.

Alex Bois, High Street on Market, Philadelphia

Angela Dimayuga, Mission Chinese Food, NYC

Grae Nonas, Olamaie, Austin

Matt Rudofker, Momofuku Ssäm Bar, NYC

Daniela Soto-Innes, Cosme, NYC

Jenner Tomaska, Next, Chicago

Best Chefs

Chefs who have set new or consistent standards of excellence in their respective regions. Eligible candidates may be from any kind of dining establishment and must have been working as a chef for at least five years with the three most recent years spent in the region.

Best Chef: Great Lakes (IL, IN, MI, OH)

Abraham Conlon, Fat Rice, Chicago

Curtis Duffy, Grace, Chicago

Lee Wolen, Boka, Chicago

Erling Wu-Bower, Nico Osteria, Chicago

Andrew Zimmerman, Sepia, Chicago

Best Chef: Mid-Atlantic (D.C., DE, MD, NJ, PA, VA)

Peter Chang, Peter Chang, Arlington, VA

Eli Kulp, Fork, Philadelphia

Rich Landau, Vedge, Philadelphia

Aaron Silverman, Rose's Luxury, Washington, D.C.

Greg Vernick, Vernick Food & Drink, Philadelphia

Cindy Wolf, Charleston, Baltimore

Best Chef: Midwest (IA, KS, MN, MO, NE, ND, SD, WI)

Paul Berglund, The Bachelor Farmer, Minneapolis

Justin Carlisle, Ardent, Milwaukee

Kevin Nashan, Sidney Street Café, St. Louis

Lenny Russo, Heartland Restaurant & Farm Direct Market, St. Paul, MN

Kevin Willmann, Farmhaus, St. Louis

Best Chef: New York City (Five Boroughs)

Marco Canora, Hearth

Mario Carbone and Rich Torrisi, Carbone

Anita Lo, Annisa

Jonathan Waxman, Barbuto

Jody Williams, Buvette

Best Chef: Northeast (CT, MA, ME, MH, NY STATE, RI, VT)

Karen Akunowicz, Myers + Chang, Boston

Brian Hill, Francine, Camden, ME

Zak Pelaccio, Fish & Game, Hudson, NY

Susan Regis, Shepard, Cambridge, MA

Mike Wiley and Andrew Taylor Eventide Oyster Co., Portland, ME

Best Chef: Northwest (AK, ID, MT, OR, WA, WY)

Greg Denton and Gabrielle Quiñónez Denton, Ox, Portland, OR

Mike Easton, Il Corvo Pasta, Seattle

Renee Erickson, The Whale Wins, Seattle

Justin Woodward, Castagna, Portland, OR

Rachel Yang and Seif Chirchi, Joule, Seattle

Best Chef: South (AL, AR, FL, LA, MS, PR)

Vishwesh Bhatt, Snackbar, Oxford, MS

Justin Devillier, La Petite Grocery, New Orleans

Jose Enrique, Jose Enrique, San Juan, PR

Slade Rushing, Brennan's, New Orleans

Isaac Toups, Toups' Meatery, New Orleans

Best Chef: Southeast (GA, KY, NC, SC, TN, WV)

Kevin Gillespie, Gunshow, Atlanta

Edward Lee, 610 Magnolia, Louisville, KY

Steven Satterfield, Miller Union, Atlanta

Andrew Ticer and Michael Hudman, Andrew Michael Italian Kitchen, Memphis

Tandy Wilson, City House, Nashville

Best Chef: Southwest (AZ, CO, NM, OK, TX, UT)

Bryce Gilmore, Barley Swine, Austin

Steve McHugh, Cured, San Antonio

Hugo Ortega, Caracol, Houston

Alex Seidel, Fruition, Denver

Justin Yu, Oxheart, Houston

Best Chef: West (CA, HI, NV)

Matthew Accarrino, SPQR, San Francisco

Michael Cimarusti, Providence, Los Angeles

Dominique Crenn, Atelier Crenn, San Francisco

Jeremy Fox, Rustic Canyon, Santa Monica, CA

Corey Lee, Benu, San Francisco

Jon Shook and Vinny Dotolo, Animal, Los Angeles