NEW YORK, NY (April 25, 2017) – The James Beard Foundation, the culinary industry’s most prestigious recognition program, has announced the winners of the 2017 James Beard Media Awards, honoring the nation’s top cookbook authors, culinary broadcast producers and hosts, and food industry journalists. Nominees and guests gathered at an exclusive celebration dinner, hosted by James Beard Award winner Andrew Zimmern, on Tuesday, April 25, at Pier Sixty at Chelsea Piers in New York City. A complete list of award winners can be found at the end of this release, as well as at jamesbeard.org/awards.
Highlights from this year’s list of winners include:
Book Awards:
General Cooking: Eat in My Kitchen: To Cook, to Bake, to Eat, and to Treat, Meike Peters, (Prestel)
Book of the Year: Victuals: An Appalachian Journey, with Recipes, Ronni Lundy, (Clarkson Potter)
Cookbook Hall of Fame: Judith Jones
Broadcast Media Awards:
Outstanding Personality/Host: Andrew Zimmern, Andrew Zimmern’s Bucket List; Andrew Zimmern’s Driven by Food; Bizarre Foods with Andrew Zimmern, Airs on: Travel Channel and andrewzimmern.com
Podcast: The Four Top, Host: Katherine Cole, Producers: Katherine Cole and Morgan Holm, Airs on: npr.org and iTunes
Television Program, on Location: Chef’s Table, Producers: David Gelb, Brian McGinn, Matthew Weaver, Andrew Fried, and Dane Lillegard, Airs on: Netflix
Journalism Awards:
Visual Storytelling: “Thrill Ride,” Vince Dixon and Mariya Pylayev, Eater
Publication of the Year: Roads & Kingdoms
Craig Claiborne Distinguished Restaurant Review Award: “High Chairs and Hard Core”; “The X-Files”; “Beyond Biscuits and Gravy,” Karen Brooks, Portland Monthly
M.F.K. Fisher Distinguished Writing Award: “The Dog Thief Killings,” Calvin Godfrey, Roads & Kingdoms
All Media Awards categories are overseen by individual committees which serve to determine Awards policies and procedures. The Book Award judges (48 in total) include editors, authors, journalists, and culinary educators who have not published a culinary book during the current Awards year. The Broadcast Media Award judges (more than 50 in total) include producers, educators, editors, and print journalists. Journalism Award judges (more than 100 in total) include working editors, journalists, retired food and beverage editors and writers, and deans and professors of leading journalism colleges.
The Awards began with a cocktail reception where Pier Sixty Host Chefs Philip DeMaiolo and Matthew Tiscornia prepared an array of passed hors d’oeuvres. Dinner was prepared by James Beard Award winner Maricel E. Presilla (Cucharamama, Hoboken, NJ), James Beard Award winner Michael Solomonov (Zahav, Philadelphia), and James Beard Award winner Rick Bayless (Frontera Grill, Chicago). A dessert reception immediately followed, with an array of sweets provided by Nicolas Botomisy (Valrhona, New York City), James Beard Award-nominated chef Meg Galus (Boka, Chicago), James Beard Award-nominated chef Maura Kilpatrick (Oleana, Boston), and James Beard Award-nominated chef Margarita Manzke (République, Los Angeles).
The Restaurant and Chef and Restaurant Design Awards will be announced on Monday, May 1, 2017, at the James Beard Awards Gala in Chicago. A number of special achievement awards, including Humanitarian of the Year, Lifetime Achievement, Who’s Who, Design Icon, and America’s Classics will be also be distributed to pre-announced honorees. This highly anticipated annual celebration will take place at the Lyric Opera of Chicago and will be hosted by Jesse Tyler Ferguson. A gala reception will immediately follow, featuring top chefs and beverage professionals from across the country.
Established in 1990, the James Beard Awards recognize culinary professionals for excellence and achievement in their fields and furthers the Foundation’s mission to celebrate, nurture, and honor chefs and other leaders making America’s food culture more delicious, diverse, and sustainable for everyone. Each award category has an individual committee made up of industry professionals who volunteer their time to oversee the policies, procedures, and selection of judges for their respective Awards program. All JBF Award winners receive a certificate and a medallion engraved with the James Beard Foundation Awards insignia. There are no cash prizes.
The 2017 James Beard Foundation Awards are proudly hosted by Choose Chicago and the Illinois Restaurant Association and presented in association with the Chicago Department of Aviation, HMSHost, Illinois Office of Tourism, and Mariano’s as well as the following partners: Premier Sponsors: All-Clad Metalcrafters, American Airlines, Lavazza, S.Pellegrino® Sparkling Natural Mineral Water, True Refrigeration®; Supporting Sponsors: Breville®, Hyatt, Robert Mondavi Winery, Skuna Bay Salmon, Valrhona; Gala Reception Sponsors: Ecolab, Front of the House®, Kendall College, Windstar Cruises; with additional support from: Chefwear, Creminelli Fine Meats, Emmi Roth, VerTerra Dinnerware. Lead support for the JBF Media Awards was provided by Breville, Rodney Strong Vineyards and William Grant & Sons.
360 MAGAZINE 