Local restaurant boosters are sighing disappointment once more as a James Beard Foundation award eluded chefs from The Gateway City yet again. Neither Gerard Craft nor Kevin Nashan, the two local chefs who were among six finalists in the Best Chef: Midwest category, was named winner. Instead, Justin Aprahamian of Sanford in Milwaukee landed that honor.
Craft is chef-owner of Niche, Pastaria, Taste and Brasserie. Nashan is chef-owner of Sidney Street Cafe. This is Craft’s fifth time as a finalist in this category; it is Nashan’s first. This year marks the first time that St. Louis saw two of its chefs nominated for Best Chef: Midwest.
This article appears in May 2014.