James Beard Tasting Event Was Right on Track
Awards after-party at Union Station featured a diverse array from across the nation
James Beard Awards After-Party: Right on Track
Tuesday’s Local Food Forum reported that diversity was the big winner at Monday night’s James Beard Foundation Restaurant and Chef Awards. That also was true of the deliciously indulgent tasting event at Union Station that followed the show, with bites provided by chefs from far-flung locations representing both culinary and demographic diversity.
The Union Station setting was not just atmospheric, but a very smart decision by the Foundation’s planners. Previous after-parties had been held at Lyric Opera House, the site of the ceremony since the awards were moved here from New York City in 2015. While the historic Opera House is great for a stage event, its narrow aisles and spaces made foot-traffic flow at the after-party a huge problem. The main hall at Union Station enabled the well-dressed celebrants to move freely among the food and beverage stations.
The host city was well represented in this showcase of culinary art from across the U.S. Here are three of the local stars who served up treats at the event:
Lamar Moore of Eleven Eleven Restaurant (West Loop), noted for his Southern-style cuisine, put finishing touches on his Blackened Skuna Bay Salmon with Dirty Rice and Verjus, which was yummy and one of the more ample portions for the evening.
Gene Kato of Momotaro Restaurant (West Loop) used a torch to crisp up his Omakase Temaki, fish and rice served on nori (seaweed) as a hand roll.
Meg Galus, a three-time finalist for the James Beard Outstanding Pastry Chef Award while working for some of Chicago’s top restaurants, served up confections from her current outpost, Cocoa and Co. in the city’s Old Town neighborhood. Those Valrhona Chocolate bonbons on the right were amazeballs.
Others repping Chicago included Maya-Camille Broussard of Justice of the Pies, who was a finalist this year for Outstanding Pastry Chef, and students in the culinary program at Roberto Clemente Community Academy in the West Town community at a dessert station presented by the National Restaurant Association.
I also have to single out one of the featured restaurants from away because they produced my favorite item (no slight intended to the other delicious food). Ron Hsu and Aaron Phillips of Lazy Betty in Atlanta presented a Peruvian-style dish called Shrimp Causa with Avocado and Aji Potato.
The best way I can describe it is it’s like shrimp and grits, but with grits replaced by silky-smooth, garlicky potatoes. Total comfort food that I could have made a whole meal of alone.