These Arizona food icons took home major honors at the 2022 James Beard Awards
Two Arizona food icons won James Beard Awards at the 2022 ceremony, an incredibly strong showing that continued the state's winning streak in the "Oscar's of the Food World."
Chef Chris Bianco of Phoenix's Pizzeria Bianco and baker Don Guerra of Tucson's Barrio Bread were honored June 13 during a ceremony at the Lyric Opera of Chicago. Hosted by Beard-winning chef Kwame Onwuachi and livestreamed on Twitter, the event marked the return of the awards after a two-year absence and overhaul of how the awards work.
Guerra won the award for Outstanding Baker, and Bianco was named Outstanding Restaurateur. It's Bianco's second Beard Award. He won Best Chef — Southwest in 2003.
Chris Bianco and Don Guerra win at 2022 James Beard Awards
It's not the first nomination for Guerra, the Tucson breadmaker, but it is his first win at the Beard Awards. The former schoolteacher has been garnering national recognition for his artisanal bakery Barrio Bread. Since he opened the business in his garage in 2009, the bakery has worked to support Arizona farmers and bring back heritage grains like White Sonora Wheat. Boosting the local grain economy was a focal point of his acceptance speech.
In a teary-eyed speech, Bianco thanked fellow Arizona nominee Giovanni Scorzo of Andreoli Italian Grocer and named him as one of his mentors.
"I'm really overwhelmed," he said. "I'm overwhelmed to see your faces, to see smiles again. Mouths moving. There's so many of my friends that didn't get through the last two years, physically, spiritually or their business was shut down. And I don't want to forget those people as we celebrate."
After a decade-long slump, Arizona has had a pair of high-profile wins in the past few years. The iconic Tucson restaurant El Güero Canelo took home a 2018 America's Classics Awards for its Sonoran hot dogs. And the next year, Scottsdale chef Charleen Badman won Best Chef — Southwest Award for her restaurant FnB. Besides Bianco, past Arizona winners include Christopher Gross and Janos Wilder.
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Arizona's 2022 James Beard Award finalists
The awards had been completely restructured in an effort to create more diversity after a public controversy in 2020. Now that they're back, the new system seems to have benefited Arizona, which had 15 semifinalists nominations and four finalists this year. The finalists were:
Best New Restaurant: Bacanora in Phoenix.
Outstanding Baker: Don Guerra of Barrio Bread in Tucson.
Outstanding Restaurateur: Chris Bianco of Tratto, Pane Bianco and Pizzeria Bianco in Phoenix.
Best Chef — Southwest: Giovanni Scorzo of Andreoli Italian Grocer in Scottsdale.
Over the weekend, the Beard Foundation also announced the winners of its 2022 Media Awards. The media awards celebrated food journalists, authors, broadcasters and social media content creators.
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Reach reporter Andi Berlin at [email protected]. Follow her on Facebook @andiberlin, Instagram @andiberlin or Twitter @andiberlin.
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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Chris Bianco and Don Guerra win 2022 James Beard Awards for Arizona
