Today, the James Beard Foundation has announced the semi-finalists for their 2020 Restaurant and Chef Awards, including several Colorado staples. The non-profit’s mission is to educate people on American cuisine as well as bring recognition and acclaim to the restaurants and chefs who excel in making food culture more diverse, sustainable and delicious. The James Beard Awards influence shines a light on many different restaurants improving culinary culture across the United States, and even a mere nomination shows a restaurant’s dedication to their craft. For 2020, the foundation switched it up and updated its nomination regions. Now Colorado has been moved from the Southwest into a new Mountain region that also includes Wyoming, Idaho and Utah. As a result, this year Colorado has 18 nominations in comparison to last year’s eight. This also comes after a slew of changes in 2019 that aimed to make the awards more diverse and transparent.
The Colorado James Beard nominees are as follows:
Best New Restaurant
Sunday Vinyl – Denver
Outstanding Bar Program
Williams & Graham – Denver
Outstanding Restaurant
Frasca Food and Wine – Boulder
Sushi Den – Denver
Outstanding Restaurateur
Jennifer Jasinski, Beth Gruitch, Crafted Concepts – Denver (Rioja, Bistro Vendôme, Stoic & Genuine, and others)
Outstanding Wine Program
element 47 at The Little Nell – Aspen, CO
Outstanding Wine, Spirits, or Beer Producer
Todd Leopold and Scott Leopold, Leopold Bros. – Denver
Rising Star Chef of the Year
Austin Nickel, Spuntino – Denver
Best Chef: Mountain (CO, ID, MT, UT, WY)
Carrie Baird, Bar Dough – Denver
Caroline Glover, Annette – Aurora
Duncan Holmes, Beckon – Denver
Brother Luck, Four by Brother Luck – Colorado Springs
Tommy Lee, Hop Alley, Denver
Josh Niernberg, Bin 707 Foodbar – Grand Junction
Cindhura Reddy, Spuntino – Denver
Dana Rodriguez, Super Mega Bien – Denver
Kelly Whitaker, The Wolf’s Tailor – Denver
Luis Young, Penrose Room – Colorado Springs
Go here to see the full list. Winners will be announced on March 25.