Tonight, at the 27th annual James Beard Awards in Chicago, Kevin Nashan of Sidney Street Cafe in St. Louis, was named best chef in the Midwest.
Nashan, who also owns Peacemaker Lobster & Crab Co., is a five-time semifinalist, and 2017 marked his third year being nominated for the award.
Other nominees for the award were Justin Carlisle of Ardent, Steven Brown of Tilia (Minneapolis), Jorge Guzman of Brewer’s Table at Surly Brewing Co. (Minneapolis) and Kevin Willmann of Farmhaus (St. Louis).
The complete list of James Beard winners can be found at jamesbeard.org.
Wisconsin awardees
This was Chef Justin Carlisle's third nomination for Best Chef Midwest, and he was Wisconsin’s only finalist for the 2017 awards. But, he stands among numerous other Wisconsin chefs who have made the journey from the James Beard semifinals into the finals.
Among those in Wisconsin who have taken home the coveted award, there are a number of Milwaukee chefs.
Sanford D’Amato, founder of Sanford, blazed new territory when he broke into the New York scene and make a name for himself in New York, a city largely ruled by French-born chefs in the 1970's. Years later, after moving back to Milwaukee, he also made his mark as the first chef in Wisconsin to win the prestigious James Beard Award, which he did in 1996, earning the title of Best Chef in the Midwest.
Justin Aprahamian, who purchased Sanford from D’Amato in 2012, is Milwaukee’s most recent Best Chef Midwest Award winner. He was nominated four times before achieving his win in 2014. His win was preceded by Adam Siegel’s win in 2008, when he took home the title of Best Chef Midwest for his work at Lake Park Bistro.
Other winners have hailed from Madison. Chef Tory Miller was the 2012 winner for his work at L’Etoile. His award was the second for a L’Etoile chef, with founder, Odessa Piper, taking home the award in 2001.
Wisconsin natives who have been recipients of James Beard Awards include Paul Bartolotta, was the first chef to win a James Beard in two regions. The first was in 1994 when he headed up the kitchen at Spiaggia in Chicago; the other was in 2009 for his work at Ristorante di Mare in Las Vegas. Kenosha native Tony Mantuano also won the award for best chef Great Lakes for his work at Spiaggia in 2005.
In addition to chef-based awards, restaurants like Watts Tea Shop and Three Brothers have brought home the prize for American Classics and Bryant's Cocktail Lounge was a 2013 semifinalist for Outstanding Bar Program.
As a passionate champion of the local dining scene, Lori has reimagined the restaurant critic's role into that of a trusted dining concierge, guiding food lovers to delightful culinary discoveries and memorable experiences.
Lori is an avid cook whose accrual of condiments and spices is rivaled only by her cookbook collection. Her passion for the culinary industry was birthed while balancing A&W root beer mugs as a teenage carhop, fed by insatiable curiosity and fueled by the people whose stories entwine with every dish. Lori is the author of two books: the "Wisconsin Field to Fork" cookbook and "Milwaukee Food". Her work has garnered journalism awards from entities including the Milwaukee Press Club. In 2024, Lori was honored with a "Top 20 Women in Hospitality to Watch" award by the Wisconsin Restaurant Association.
When she’s not eating, photographing food, writing or planning for TV and radio spots, you’ll find Lori seeking out adventures with her husband Paul, traveling, cooking, reading, learning, snuggling with her cats and looking for ways to make a difference.
