{From left, Gerard Craft and Kevin Nashan}
The finalists for the 2014 James Beard Foundation Awards were announced today, and St. Louis continues to be represented. Gerard Craft, chef-owner of the Craft family of restaurants and Kevin Nashan, chef-owner of Sidney Street Cafe, have made the short list in the Best Chef: Midwest category.
Three other St. Louis chefs were semifinalists in that category: Josh Galliano, chef-owner of The Libertine; Kevin Willmann, chef-owner of Farmhaus; and Ben Poremba, chef-owner of Elaia and Olio.
Among national awards, Rick Lewis of Quincy Street Bistro was in the running with other promising young chefs around the nation in the Rising Star category, while Taste looked to remain in contention for Outstanding Bar Program. Neither advanced to the final round.
Winners of the chef and restaurant awards will be announced at a ceremony in New York City May 5. A full list of nominees is available here.
This article appears in Guide to Beer 2014.