COVID-19 casts shadow over James Beard nominations

Listen to this article

The James Beard Foundation recognized the devastating impact the COVID-19 outbreak has had on the food and beverage sector in announcing this year’s nominees for the nation’s top awards in culinary excellence.

Charleston has once again been well-represented among the nominees, with four writing finalists for a cookbook, short-form essay and journalism, two for food, and one for restaurant design.

Foundation CEO Clare Reichenbach emphasized the need to support the food and beverage industry, which employs 16 million people and serves as a cultural touchstone for America.

“Some of the restaurants announced today are temporarily closed, some are operating in another form, such as takeout or meal relief efforts, whilst others have already announced that they will permanently close,” Reichenbach said in a news release.

The foundation has delivered more than $4 million to independent and local restaurants around the U.S through its Food and Beverage Industry Relief Fund.

The foundation will not hold a physical ceremony this year for the media awards but will issue a news release of the winners on May 27.

The Restaurant and Chef Award winners will be announced Sept. 25 during a live broadcast from Chicago, but the foundation stressed that additional information about the format and location of that event are yet to be determined.

The Charleston nominees are listed below, and a complete list of nominees is available online.