Vijay Kumar of Semma.
Picture: Daniel Boczarski/Getty Photographs
Vijay Kumar is on a roll proper now. Final night time, Kumar took residence the James Beard Basis Chef and Restaurant Award for Finest Chef: New York only a couple weeks after the New York Occasions named his restaurant Semma the town’s finest. Ending a yearslong dry spell, Kumar was one of some large winners from New York. (The complete record of winners may be discovered right here.)
Town took residence a handful of serious awards, together with the three largest nationwide honors. Lee Hanson and Riad Nasr had been named Excellent Restaurateurs one 12 months after opening their refurbished rendition of Le Veau d’Or. Chef Jungsik Yim, whose restaurant Jungsik helped pave the best way for the ascendancy of contemporary Korean meals right here, nabbed Excellent Chef, whereas Atomix — whose chef labored at Jungsik — received Excellent Hospitality. In the meantime, the always-mobbed Superbueno acquired a nod by way of the Excellent Skilled in Cocktail Service (that’s a mouthful) for Ignacio “Nacho” Jimenez.
That is the primary large displaying for New York shortly. Final 12 months, the only winner from the town was the fine-dining chef Charlie Mitchell, then of Clover Hill. (He has since moved to Saga, the restaurant within the sky from Kent Hospitality.) The 12 months earlier than, it was Junghyun Park. Each gained deservedly for Finest Chef: New York. However New York was shut out of nationwide awards these years, and a few noticed it as a part of the Basis making an intentional flip towards smaller cities.
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