Awards Season Continues! D.C.'s big winner at the James Beard Foundation awards—besides Tim Carman, of course—is José Andrés, who was honored last night with the foundation's outstanding chef award. (Look at the José-inspired tweet storm!) In Mid-Atlantic regional action, Eater notes the "[e]ven though [D.C.] had three of the five nominees—including Cathal Armstrong (Restaurant Eve), Johnny Monis (Komi) and Peter Pastan (Obelisk)—in the category, Philly stole away with the win for chef Michael Solomonov of Zahav." Hey, at least D.C. isn't Los Angeles! [Y&H, WSJ, Eater D.C., LAT]

Such Sights! Among the interior "SAX Scandals" gems at the heavily gilded SAX Lounge & Restaurant downtown, opening on Friday: A painting of George W. Bush in the Oval Office wearing Confederate flag boxer shorts with a bikini-clad woman using an American flag-draped standard as a stripper pole. [Eater D.C.]

Hot-Oven Anticipation: When Bethesda's Pizzeria da Marco opens up on May 16, "a 4,500-pound wood-burning oven designed to cook pizzas at 900 degrees in a mere 60 seconds" will go into service. [The Feast]

Farmers Market Field Guide: "Nettles are best utilized in nettle soup." But watch out, those "leaves are actively belligerent." [DCist; Chocolate & Zucchini]

Down the Pike: Georgia Avenue will be home to a new restaurant called DC Reynolds Bar, just down the way from Looking Glass Lounge, a "general concept is expected to be similar to the old Temperance Hall." Expect the new place to "open by early fall." [New Columbia Heights, @DCReynoldsBar]

Photo by angela n via Flickr/Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic

Dishes We Dug

Dishes We Didn't: Corona-battered fish 'n' chips, made "with real Corona" at Grand Central. (May taste better than actually drinking that Corona!)

Best Acceptance Speech at the James Beard Awards: "I had money on [Grist.com's Tom] Philpott. That's all I have to say."—former Young & Hungry columnist Tim Carman, winner in the best food-related columns/commentary category

Photo by Chris Shott

Last year was the first time a craft brewer made the list when Garrett Oliver, brewmaster at Brooklyn Brewery and celebrated authority on craft beer and food, was nominated. This year Oliver made the list of semi-finalists but was not chosen as a nominee. In local news, sommelier and mixologist Todd Thrasher of Alexandria's Restaurant Eve and PX was a semi-finalist this year in the same category but did not make the cut for nominees. And of course Y&H's former steward Tim Carman is up for an award again this year.

Calagione was likely chosen as a result of the success of his 15-year-old craft brewery and the popularity of his Discovery Channel show, Brewmasters, which aired in its first season this winter. Through his innovative beer and infectious charisma, now broadcast to millions, Calagione has been bringing craft beer to the masses, and at the same time working to eleveate the status of beer in a wine and spirits world. I, for one, wish him luck. Winners will be announced at an awards ceremony in New York City in May.

Photo courtesy of Discovery Channel

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Awards Season: On the heels of the James Beard Foundation nominees being named earlier this week, the Restaurant Association Metropolitan Washington has released the names of individuals and restaurants nominated for its annual RAMMY awards. Winners are named at the swanky restaurant industry dinner in June. [Eater D.C; Examiner]

Future Openings: In Shaw, a new tavern at 5th Street NW and Florida Avenue is gearing up for a June opening. [PoP]

Radio Foodie: Without sight or smell, it can be amazing how well radio can be used to discuss food. Tim Carman profiles WAMU-FM's Kojo Nnamdi, one of the area's best food voices who doesn't really cook that much. [WaPo]

Photo by Flickr user Mllerustad using an Attribution 2.0 Generic Creative Commons license

Take a look for yourself:

• Daily Blender has red carpet photos. How many of these faces do you recognize on first look?
• HuffPo has put together a winners slide show with a lot of food-porn pictures to substitute for those chefs who are so famous they don't have readily available head shots.
• Grub Street New York covered the after parties and found Daniel Boulud dancing on the tables.
• The Chicago Tribune covered the ceremonies live on the ground, with its own Beard winner, Kevin Pang. The old-school media even used video!

• Eat Me Daily has more candid photos of the event and pokes fun at the ceremony's Star Wars theme.
• Eater.com live-blogged the event, with lots of photos, but the love-it-or-hate-it blog didn't dare ask for an interview with Outstanding Chef winner Tom Colicchio.
• The Village Voice couldn't help but notice how white men and product placements dominated the gala.
• Through gritted teeth, the Los Angeles Times noted how New York City copped most of the major awards. Not that the City of Angels has feelings about this East Coast/West Coast divide.
• Finally, the "person" who had the most fun at the Beard gala had to be Ruth Bourdain, a fictional Twitter mash-up of Ruth Reichl and Anthony Bourdain. Best line among her/his/its Beard tweets: " must be starving because Mario batali's shaven jiggling neck fat is making my mouth water"

Blymire representin' with the Wienermobile

Y&H has made no secret of his affection for Carol Blymire's Alinea at Home blog, in which the self-described "single chick in a broke-ass kitchen with no culinary training" cooks her way through one of the most complicated cookbooks on earth. For fun, no less.

I'm not the only one who has taken a liking to Blymire's style. The James Beard Foundation recently came calling. The Takoma Park resident is scheduled to live blog the Beard Awards ceremony on Monday night. Blymire took a few minutes to answer a handful of questions about her upcoming turn in the JBF spotlight.

Young &  Hungry: How did you get the gig?

Carol Blymire: I got an e-mail a few weeks ago from one of the lovely ladies at the James Beard Foundation who reads my blog and who hoped I'd be able to contribute my own unique perspective on the awards ceremony. I nearly fell out of my chair, because it was so out of the blue and such an honor to be asked. I can't wait to do it. It'll be great to be in the presence of some of the people I admire most in this world. Thomas Keller and Grant Achatz are presenting, so I'm excited to see them again, along with so many others who inspire cooks and writers like me to do what we do.

Y&H: Will you be interviewing people or just offering your insights and opinions?

CB: I'll be interviewing people as well as offering my observations, thoughts, and insights on nominees, winners, and the general goings-on that night. The Foundation will have their web site editors in the press room checking out the content (they're smart, these Beard Foundation people), so I'm excited to see how it will all come together. I just hope they let me talk about how hot I think David Chang is. 'Cause that won't get old at all.

Y&H: Will you feel the need to assume an institutional JBF voice?

CB: The great thing about this is that they've asked me to contribute based on who I am and how I write, not because they wanted a ghostwriter. I'm sure there will be editorial standards I'll need to adhere to, but that's fine with me. I mean, I was really pushing to Glee-i-fy my participation by doing all my updates via reworked '80s song-and-dance numbers with all the chef winners doing backup vocals and dramatic arm gestures, but I guess I'll just be writing. In my own, slightly edited, non-jazz hands voice.

Y&H: Are you already thinking of clever things to say about the celebrity chefs?

CB: Let's just say I've been doing my research and I'll be the nerd with the notecards. Hmmmmm... what rhymes with Cathal.....?

Y&H: Do you plan to do such a bang-up job that they will nominate you in the blog category next year?

CB: Actually, I'm hoping I can get nominated on the merits of my own blog, Alinea at Home, next year. I mean, Alinea was just named the best restaurant in the U.S., my food truck April Fool's Day post pissed off a record number of people who actually showed up for the food truck's arrival in their city, and for a single chick in a broke-ass kitchen with no culinary training to be able to pull off avant-garde cooking is something I'm pretty damn proud of. So, I'm planning to up the number of dishes I do from the book over the next few months, and increase the number of fart jokes I incorporate into each post. I'll be a shoo-in.

Y&H: What does one wear at a gala while live blogging?

CB: The people at Asprey and Garrard haven't returned my calls, so I guess the tiara is out. Bugger! I'm thinking: black dress, hot shoes, smoky eyeliner, and my laptop. Unless the good folks at Apple wanna send me an iPad to use for the gig. (Call me, Steve Jobs! xoxo) But hey, wait a minute... thanks a lot for making me have a bit of a fashion panic, because I wasn't even thinking about that until you asked. Thanks a lot. What are YOU wearing, Carman? Huh? [Ed: Carman plans to rent something from the Snoop line.]

Y&H: Do you plan to root for particular people (as in your D.C. buds) or keep an objective voice?

CB: I don't think it's any secret that I'm rooting for Alinea in the Outstanding Service category. And, Bibou in Philadelphia (Best New Restaurant) has a great story — those guys started that place with something like $30,000 and a dream. When I look at the entire nominee list, it's just so amazing to see so many deserving chefs from every region and every discipline. But here's the thing: I've lived in this city nearly 25 years and absolutely love how the food scene has evolved in that time. I'm proud of our DC nominees, and hope I can hug Amanda Cook in the winner's circle because she is amazing at what she does and so deserves this nomination. It'd be great to see Johnny Monis (Rising Star) and Jose Andres (Outstanding Chef) with medals around their necks, too. And, to have three DC folks in the Mid-Atlantic Best Chef category is fantastic. I'd be thrilled if Cathal [Armstrong of Restaurant Eve], Bryan [Voltaggio of Volt], or Peter [Pastan of Obelisk] brought home the prize. And, while I'm not live-blogging the media and book awards the night before, it can't go without saying that I'm pulling for The Washington Post, Kojo, and you, as well as Ad Hoc at Home and the Momofuku cookbook.

Photo by Catherine Gelera

Don't worry, I'm not here to toot my own horn. I'm here instead to point out a potentially troubling trend: The recurrence of the same names over and over again in the restaurant and chef categories.

For example, chef/owner Cathal Armstrong of Restaurant Eve was nominated for the fourth consecutive year in the Best Chef: Mid-Atlantic category. Chef/owner Johnny Monis of Komi was awarded a nomination for the third straight year in the Rising Star Chef category. Likewise, José Andrés was nominated for a third straight year in the Outstanding Chef category.

Let me hasten to add that all of these chefs deserve recognition. They are, without question, among the best in their field. But here's the part that troubles me when I stew over it: Their running nods give off the impression that the chefs will be nominated until they win.

This is a tough call. The best chefs deserve to be given a Beard nomination, but when the same ones get nominated, year after year, it starts to make me think the nominating committees are either stuck in a rut or too nervous to go beyond the usual suspects. Besides, does a master chef like Armstrong really want to win an award after four straight noms? Doesn't that strike you, on some level, as finally wearing the judges down?

Armstrong deserves to win on his own merit — and likely will, if selected this year. But I'm beginning to wonder if nominees should be limited to, say, two consecutive years and then be forced to sit out a year before receiving another nod. It's a thought. I'd love to get your opinions on the subject. E-mail them to me when you get a second.

By the way, here is the full list of nominees. My reservations about the process does not diminish my respect for the nominees. I send out hearty congratulations to all the D.C. area nominees, including Joe Yonan, Jane Black, and Bonnie Benwick at the Washington Post; pastry chef and cookbook author David Guas; chefs Peter Pastan (Obelisk), José Andrés (minibar), Johnny Monis, Cathal Armstrong, and Bryan Voltaggio (Volt); Kojo Nnamdi and team at WAMU, and pastry chef Amanda Cook at CityZen.

Closer to home: The nominees for the 2010 RAMMY Awards will be announced tomorrow at the Ritz-Carlton in downtown D.C. Y&H has seen an embargoed list of the nominees, and while there may not be many surprises, there are a few new features for this year's ceremonies.

We've already told you about the RAMMYs' long overdue format change, the result of much public bitching, but the Restaurant Association Metropolitan Washington has also added a long overdue category this year: beverage/mixology program.

Finally, there's one more change: The public will be able to vote for its favorite restaurant via an online poll on the Washington City Paper site. In previous years, the public had to send in a ballot pulled from WaPo's Sunday magazine. This year's WCP poll will be available online starting in late April. The public winner will receive its own RAMMY award.

The RAMMY awards gala will take place on Sunday, June 6, at the Marriott Wardman Park.

Did you hear that? Utter radio silence.

Y&H expected a cacophony of food blog and board commentary today following the announcement of the 2009 James Beard Awards for restaurants and chefs.  But after the D.C. area got the cold shoulder last night at the Beard ceremony in the Big Apple, there has been little hand-wringing about the snubs, aside from an implication of favoritism among judges (Don Rockwell), an honor-to-be-nominated pep talk (Michael Birchenall), and a straight-forward, just-the-facts-ma'am report (the Post's Joe Yonan, an award-winner himself this year).

What's missing? Arguments, fussing, and outraged commentary about the New York-orientation of this year's winners. However, if you study the 2009 winners, particularly national categories in which nominees come from all parts of the country, you'll find that New York chefs and restaurants won 8 out of 9 times.

WTF? I mean, WTF?

OK, yes, everyone who follows food in this country understands that NYC is still the epicenter of the known universe when it comes to dining. Just ask a New Yorker — or even someone who just writes for a New York publication — and they'll tell you.

This year's winners got me to thinking about the process behind the voting. On the foundation's Awards Policies and Procedures page, you can find this explanation under the Restaurant and Chef Awards:

Anyone can submit a chef or restaurant for consideration during the online open call for entries in the fall. (There is no entry fee.) Entries are tabulated by the independent accounting firm Lutz & Carr, and based on the results, the Restaurant and Chef Awards Committee produces a nominating ballot with up to 20 semifinalists in each category. This ballot is distributed online to more than 400 judges, who select the five official nominees in each category. The same judges then vote on these five nominees to choose the winners.

The judges include previous Restaurant and Chef Award winners, the Restaurant and Chef Awards Committee, 25 leading regional restaurant critics, food and wine editors, and culinary educators in each of the 10 regions. There are more than 400 judges nationwide.

In each category, the judges are looking for individuals whose contribution to their field is unique and long-lasting. The specific criteria change depending on the category...

How many of these 400 judges, you have to wonder, are based in New York City? Given that the panel includes previous winners and "food and wine editors," you have to think that a good percentage of them are. I called the Beard Foundation's PR folks to see if they could track down the list of judges, so that I could determine any NYC biases. I'm still waiting on that list and, if I get it, I'll pass along any findings.

As of right now, however, color me skeptical. I mean, if the majority of them are based in New York, then how often do they travel to cities outside of NYC to taste the food of the other nominees? Once? (If so, what if that one meal happens to be a dud, which happens even at the best of 'em.) More then once? (If so, who's footing the bill for all this travel and dining?) None? (If so, who the hell should care about these awards?)

So many questions, so few answers.

Technically, I guess you could say that Andrés, aside from nods for best new restaurant, outstanding chef, and web/radio, shared a fourth nomination, too. His boffo new Los Angeles restaurant, The Bazaar, also earned one for best design.

The Post's Tom Sietsema racked up a pair of nominations, one for his Sunday magazine feature about noisy dining rooms and one for his restaurant criticism. Sietsema submitted three reviews to earn the latter nomination: Great Expectations (3/2/2008), Robo Restaurant (6/1/2008), and An Earned Exclamation (7/20/2008). In the review category, Sietsema will be competing against Adam Platt from New York magazine and LA Weekly's Jonathan Gold, who won a Pulitzer Prize for his criticism in 2007.

"I'm humbled by the nominees in the criticism category in particular," e-mailed Sietsema, who's been nominated twice before. "I mean, Johnathan Gold [sic] was the first food writer to win a Pulitzer for his reviews! And I love Platt's prose in New York magazine. Most of all, I was pleased to see all the Washington chef talent on the Beard list. Those guys all work very hard and deserve the kudos that have come their way."

The Post also earned a nomination in the food section category. It's the first nod for editor Joe Yonan.

Three local toques were nominated in the Best Chef: Mid-Atlantic category—Cathal Armstrong (Restaurant Eve, The Majestic, and Eamonn's a Dublin Chipper), Peter Pastan (Obelisk and 2Amys), and Vikram Sunderam (Rasika).

Sunderam's nod represents the first time a chef in Ashok Bajaj's restaurant empire (Bombay Club, 701, Ardeo/Bardeo, and Oval Room) has been nominated for a Beard award. The owner naturally was thrilled with the news, though he says he and his chef won't be celebrating tonight. "Maybe on the weekend, absolutely," Bajaj says.

Does Bajaj think Sunderam can win the category? "Making a short list is fine," he says. "For me, that's as good as winning."

And lastly, Komi's Johnny Monis was nominated as a Rising Star, though Y&H thinks he may need to move to the Best Chef: Mid-Atlantic category soon. He's hardly rising anymore. He's arrived.

Y&H offers his congratulations to all the local nominees.

Winners will be announced May 3 and 4 in New York City. The full list of nominees can be found on the Beard Awards Web site. Below are the list of local nominees and what categories they are nominated in:

• The Best Chef: Mid-Atlantic nominees are: Cathal Armstrong, Jose Garces, Peter Pastan, Maricel Presilla, and Vikram Sunderam
• The Rising Star: Nate Appleman, Sean Brock, Johnny Monis, Gabriel Rucker, Michael Solomonov, and Sue Zemanick
• Best New Restaurant: The Bazaar by José Andrés, Corton, L2O, Momofuku Ko, and Scarpetta
• Nominees for Outstanding Chef: José Andrés, Dan Barber, Tom Colicchio, Suzanne Goin, and Paul Kahan
• Newspaper feature about restaurants and/or chefs: Monica Eng/Phil Vettel (Chicago Tribune), Katy McLaughlin (Wall Street Journal), Tom Sietsema (Washington Post)
• Newspaper food section: Chicago Tribune, San Francisco Chronicle, and Washington Post
• Restaurant reviews: Jonathan Gold (LA Weekly), Adam Platt (New York magazine), and Tom Sietsema (Washington Post)
• Web/Radio: Living Today (MSL Radio): José Andrés; Graperadio.com: Thomas Jefferson & Wine; Leonard Lopate (WNYC): 3-Ingredient Challenge
• Restaurant design: Thomas Schlesser (Publican), Thomas Schlesser (Bar Boulud),and Philippe Starck/Bruno Barrione/Theresa Fatino (The Bazaar)

It's a bit early to get too pump over this list, which was whittled down from more than 15,000 entries. At present, many of the categories boast 20 or more semi-finalists, but by March 23, each will be pared down to five. The winners will be honored on May 4 at the Lincoln Center in New York City.

With that said, D.C. was well represented among the semi-finalists. Young & Hungry sends out a hearty congratulations for those local chefs and restaurants that made the cut. They include:

OUTSTANDING RESTAURATEUR

Ashok Bajaj, The Oval Room, The Bombay Club, Ardeo, Bardeo, 701, and Rasika.

OUTSTANDING CHEF

José Andrés, Minibar

OUTSTANDING RESTAURANT

Kinkead’s

Vidalia

BEST NEW RESTAURANT

The Bazaar by José Andrés at SLS Hotel at Beverly Hills, Los Angeles

Cork

Volt

RISING STAR CHEF OF THE YEAR

Johnny Monis, Komi

OUTSTANDING WINE AND SPIRITS PROFESSIONAL

Todd Thrasher, Restaurant Eve

BEST CHEF: MID-ATLANTIC

Cathal Armstrong, Restaurant Eve

Anthony Chittum, Vermilion

Haidar Karoum, Proof

Peter Pastan, Obelisk

Tom Power, Corduroy

Vikram Sunderam, Rasika

Cindy Wolf, Charleston, Baltimore

Photo by Darrow Montgomery