If you haven’t heard, Cincinnati is well on its way to becoming America’s next great food city. For the first time, Cincinnati and Chicago share an equal number of nominations at tonight’s James Beard Awards, which are commonly considered the Oscars of the culinary world.
It’s a high-water mark for our fair Queen City, proving that our local restaurants can go toe-to-toe with the very best. Three local chefs lead the charge this year at the Beard Awards, each with their own diverse backgrounds and cooking philosophies. While their ideas may differ, they all have one thing in common: They’re trying their very hardest to ensure that Cincinnati is America’s next epicurean hotspot.
Jeff Harris, owner/chef at Southern restaurant Nolia, Sarah Dworak, owner/chef of Eastern European restaurant Sudova, and Dave Willocks, chef/owner of The Baker’s Table in Newport, were all named finalists for this year’s ceremony.
CityBeat profiled all three chefs prior to this year’s ceremony, which you can read by clicking here.
While Cincinnati has produced many Beard finalists over the years, the last win by a local restaurant was in 2000 when Camp Washington Chili took home the award for ‘American Regional Classic.’
The ceremony takes place tonight at the Lyric Opera in Chicago. To watch the awards, head over to Bon Appetit’s website, the content partner of the Beard Foundation who will livestream the ceremony. Coverage starts at 6:30 p.m., and you can also check out the official Instagram and TikTok pages of Bon Appetit for even more content.
