PORTLAND, Ore. — The James Beard Foundation announced the finalists for its 2024 chef and restaurant awards Wednesday morning. Six Oregon restaurants and chefs have made the list — getting one step closer to earning what many call the "Oscars of the food world."
Winners across all categories will be crowned June 10 at a black-tie ceremony in Chicago. Oregon currently has finalists in four out of the six categories.
Outstanding Chef
Sarah Minnick from Lovely's Fifty-Fifty is the only Portland chef nominated for national recognition. She's a finalist in the "Outstanding Chef" category.
Minnick was featured in the Netflix series "Chef's Table: Pizza," and is known for her unconventional ingredients and flower-topped pizza.
Outstanding Restaurant
Langbaan in Northwest Portland is a finalist for "Outstanding Restaurant." It is one of the most celebrated Thai restaurants in the U.S. The creator behind Langbaan, Portland chef and restaurateur Akkapong “Earl” Ninsom, also owns Phuket Cafe, Eem, Paadee and Hat Yai — all prized food spots in the city.
Best New Restaurant
Hayward is a finalist for "Best New Restaurant." The McMinnville-based restaurant opened in 2023 and is known for its take on "new" Northwest fare that is rooted in local farming and cultivation.
Hayward owner and chef Kari Kihara tells KGW she found out Wednesday morning while scrolling on social media. She was tagged in a congratulations post on Instagram.
"It was pretty unbelievable," said Kihara. "You know, this career in this industry is hard in a lot of ways. And working and opening a restaurant in a small town was so much harder than I anticipated it was going to be. So to be able to go through that process and be recognized in a national category — it's pretty incredible."
Outstanding Bakery
JinJu Patisserie in Portland's Williams District is a finalist for "Outstanding Bakery." Owners Jin Caldwell and Kyurim Lee moved to Portland in 2018 and began serving up croissants, savory tarts and miniature desserts.
Best Chefs
Two chefs from Oregon were named finalists for "Best Chef" in the Northwest: Josh Dorack of MÄS in Ashland and Gregory Gourdet of Kann in Portland.
Gourdet opened up Kann in August 2022 and won the James Beard Award for "Best New Restaurant" last year. It was also recently ranked one of Food & Wine Magazine's top 20 restaurants in the U.S.
This is the second year in a row that Dorack has been named a James Beard finalist for "Best Chef." His restaurant MÄS is known for its "tasting menu" and focus on Cascadian cuisine.