Welcome to the fourth annual James Beard Foundation Awards Rant. My name is Mary, and I’ll be your host for this event, just as I was in 2018, 2017, and (sigh) 2016.
We’re here because, for the fourth year in a row now, the nominating committee for the prestigious James Beard Foundation Awards has only selected Chicagoans as finalists in the Best Chef: Great Lakes category. (The nominees were announced on March 27.)
I’m reminded of the old adage: Vote early and vote often. It certainly seems as though the ballot box has been stuffed, doesn’t it?
The foundation’s Great Lakes region is supposed to represent Indiana, Michigan, and Ohio, as well as Illinois. But it only seems to serve one city despite having a list of 20 semifinalists to choose from each year throughout the four states.
Without impugning anyone’s integrity, I have to say that appearances matter. And in this instance there is, at a bare minimum, an appearance of favoritism. (Note that the Illinois Restaurant Association is listed as one of the “Proud Hosts” on the JBFA’s sponsors’ page.)
I’ve proposed that Chicago needs its own category, just as New York City has. And I’ve done so not just in my column but also in an interview last year with Bill Addison, chairman of both the 2018 and 2019 Restaurant and Chef Awards committees.
For the record, I’m still waiting to hear back from Mr. Addison (I’ve reached out twice) and from John Roth, senior account executive at Magrino, the public relations firm representing the foundation, to find out if any discussions were held about enacting the change and whether it will be addressed before next year’s nominating period. I’m curious whether any efforts were made to avert this Groundhog Day scenario, or whether the colloquial definition of insanity — keep doing the same ol’ thing while hoping for a different result — continued to be the modus operandi.
Why even bother to call this category Best Chef: Great Lakes anymore if the Beard Foundation no longer includes three of its states? Even Illinois, apparently, only has one city that’s worth recognizing: not one of its semifinalists this year was from outside Chicago.
Admittedly, chefs don’t cook for prizes; they do it because of a deep-seated passion.
But it’s wonderful when someone says, “We see you and we applaud your work.” It’s a tremendous validation to be nominated by an organization as powerful as this one.
The foundation itself touts these perks for winners: “Bragging rights, a handsome medal, an impressive certificate, a lot of publicity, and the satisfaction of having been recognized by your peers.”
You can’t win if you’re not even a finalist, though.
To keep choosing only Chicago chefs as nominees is dismissive of culinary artists who make an investment in smaller towns — in many cases their hometowns, so they can be near family. It’s insulting to those who don’t rush to the big city to make a name for themselves but who bring top quality cuisine to areas that are less saturated with high-end restaurants.
The message being sent is abundantly clear: Talent doesn’t matter. Creativity doesn’t matter. Bottom line: These neglected chefs just don’t matter.
It’s time for the James Beard Foundation to honor its stated mission to “celebrate, nurture, and honor chefs” — all chefs — by treating the Great Lakes region fairly.
First Published April 3, 2019, 10:30 a.m.
