After a two-year hiatus, the James Beard Awards (aka the culinary Oscars) are back + East Nashville is in the spotlight this year.

Three local chefs and one restaurant were named as semifinalists for the 2022 James Beard Foundation Awards.

The list of semifinalists — broken up by individual chefs and restaurants — will be narrowed down to a much shorter list on March 16, followed by the announcement of winners on June 13.

In the meantime, get to know our local nominees + brush up on Nashville’s history with the culinary world’s highest honor.

🏆 2022 nominees

Outstanding Bar Program

East Nashville cocktail bar Attaboy is in the running for its personalized libations. In fact, they don’t offer menus. Read more about Attaboy in our roundup of Nashville’s speakeasy-style bars.

Best Chef Southeast

Jake Howell of Peninsula | The restaurant opened in 2017 with a menu inspired by Spanish, Portuguese, and French cuisines
Philip Krajeck of Rolf and Daughters | In 2020, Philip was a semifinalist for his work at Folk. Now, his Germantown restaurant is in the spotlight.
Mailea Weger of Lou | Since 2019, this all-day café in Inglewood is known for its weekend brunch service, dinner creations, and wine offerings

🏆 Past James Beard winners

In 2016, City House chef Tandy Wilson won Nashville's first best chef award from the James Beard Foundation. Arnold’s Country Kitchen and Prince’s Hot Chicken also have accolades.

Since then, several James Beard Award-winning chefs have descended upon Nashville's culinary scene:

Saint Stephen’s RJ Cooper won Best Chef Mid-Atlantic in 2007 before moving to Nashville in 2016.
Sean Brock has opened three restaurants in Music City — The Continental, Joyland, and Audrey — with his fourth on the way this spring.
James Beard Award-winning and Michelin-starred chef Tony Mantuano opened Yolan in 2020.

In the past few months, two-time James Beard Award-winning chef Andrew Carmellini opened two concepts in the Gulch — the Dutch and Carne Mare.