James Beard Foundation Announces Restaurant Design Award Jury and Final Call Dates For Select 2017 Awards Categories

The James Beard Foundation announced a distinguished panel of jurors to serve as the judging authority for the 2017 Restaurant Design Awards. This panel invites restaurants, architects, interior designers, and graphic designers to submit their projects for consideration for the 2017 Restaurant Design Awards.

The 2017 jury includes Wendy Goodman, Design Editor New York Magazine, Stephanie Goto, Architect and Founder of Stephanie Goto, Andre Kikoski, Architect, James Beard Foundation Restaurant Design Award winner for The Wright, Founder of Andre Kikoski Architect, Bill Menking, Founder EIC The Architects Newspaper, Charles Phan, Chef/Owner of James Beard Award Winning Slanted Door, and multiple nominee and James Beard Award winner.

Additionally, the Foundation made its final call to entry for outstanding submissions in the three remaining Awards categories: Restaurant Design, Journalism, and Broadcast Media.

The Restaurant Design Awards were established by the James Beard Foundation in 1994 and have become highly coveted by hospitality designers nationwide. Any restaurant project that was completed or redone in North America since January 2014 is eligible, and the deadline for entry is Friday January 27, 2017. The Restaurant Design Awards are composed of two categories: restaurants 76 Seats and Over, and 75 Seats and Under.

“The JBF Restaurant Design award, selected by an esteemed panel of designers, chefs, writers and restaurant owners, is the most selective and momentous in our world; the intersection of food and design,” said design committee chair James Biber. “Past winners include the most important designers in the field, and the JBF Gala, at which they are announced, is the most spectacular gathering of the food community in the US.”

The Restaurant Design Awards Committee is made up of architects, designers, design writers, editors, and curators. The committee chooses the jurors who conduct the actual judging, in addition to overseeing the entire submission process. The 2017 committee includes James Biber, principal of Biber Architects, New York City; David Darling, a JBF Award winner and co-principal of Aidlin Darling Design, San Francisco; Dung Ngo, publisher of August Editions and editor-at-large, Rizzoli Publications, New York City; and Chee Pearlman, design curator of Ted Conferences New York City.

Additionally, the James Beard Foundation has made its final call for entry for the remaining 2017 Awards categories. Deadlines for submissions are as follows:

January 4, 2017: Journalism Awards

January 4, 2017: Broadcast Media Awards, including webcasts, podcasts, radio, and television

January 27, 2017: Restaurant Design Awards

All those interested in submitting projects for consideration should visit http://www.jamesbeard.org/awards for the complete guidelines and entry portal.

The Restaurant and Chef Award semifinalists will be announced February 15, 2017. Nominees for all award categories will be revealed on March 15, 2017. The James Beard Foundation Media Awards will be held at Pier Sixty at Chelsea Piers in New York City on Tuesday, April 25, 2017. This year the foundation has created a new journalism award and separated documentaries into their own category to reflect current trends in the vast media landscape. The Local Impact award will recognize the work of an individual who displays enterprise and excellence in ongoing local food coverage, with an emphasis on community engagement and news gathering.

The James Beard Foundation Awards Gala will be held at the Lyric Opera of Chicago on Monday, May 1, 2017. During the event, which is open to the public, awards for the Restaurant and Chef and Restaurant Design categories will be handed out, along with special achievement awards Humanitarian of the Year, Lifetime Achievement, Who’s Who of Food and Beverage in America, and America’s Classics. A gala reception will immediately follow, featuring top chefs and beverage professionals from across the country.

Established in 1990, the James Beard Awards recognize culinary professionals for excellence and achievement in their fields and further the Foundation’s mission to celebrate, nurture, and honor America’s diverse culinary heritage through programs that educate and inspire. Each award category has an individual committee made up of industry professionals who volunteer their time to oversee the policies, procedures, and selection of judges for their respective Awards program. All JBF Award winners receive a certificate and a medallion engraved with the James Beard Foundation Awards insignia. There are no cash prizes.

About the James Beard Foundation (JBF)

Founded in 1986, the James Beard Foundation celebrates, nurtures, and honors chefs and other leaders making America's food culture more delicious, diverse, and sustainable for everyone. A cookbook author and teacher with an encyclopedic knowledge about food, the late James Beard was a champion of American cuisine. He helped educate and mentor generations of professional chefs and food enthusiasts, instilling in them the value of wholesome, healthful, and delicious food. Today JBF continues in the same spirit by administering a number of diverse programs that include educational initiatives, food industry awards, scholarships for culinary students, publications, chef advocacy training, and thought-leader convening. The Foundation also maintains the historic James Beard House in New York City’s Greenwich Village as a “performance space” for visiting chefs. For more information, please visit jamesbeard.org. Get food news, recipes, and more at the James Beard Foundation’s blog, or subscribe to the free digital newsletter Beard Bites. Follow @beardfoundation on FacebookTwitterInstagramPinterest, and Snapchat. Watch the James Beard House Kitchen Cam, James Beard Awards, and more on the Foundation’s Livestreamchannel. Find more JBF-related video on the Foundation’s YouTube channels.

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