The James Beard Foundation has announced the semifinalist for this year’s awards competition. Portland has three entries on the list:
- Sam Hayward from Fore Street for Outstanding Chef
- Fore Street for Outstanding Restaurant
- Krista Kern Desjarlais from Bresca for Best Chef in the North East. The Press Herald checked in with Krista for her reaction: “I just went online and looked not even an hour ago, and almost had the baby right there,” she said, still a little breathless with the news. “It’s incredibly cool, and a total surprise.”
Several other Maine chefs are also semifinalist in the Best Chef North East category:
- Clark Frasier and Mark Gaier from Arrows in Ogunquit
- Brian Hill from Francine Bistro in Camden
- Penelle Chase, Phoebe Chase, Megan Chase and Ted Lafage from Chase’s Daily in Belfast
Final nominees for the 2010 awards will be announced March 22nd, and the winners will be announced on May 3, 2010 at Avery Fisher Hall in New York City.
You can see Krista’s reaction here: http://bit.ly/cbLBVk