Asheville restaurants Chai Pani, Cúrate win 2022 James Beard Awards
ASHEVILLE - Two downtown Asheville restaurant teams are coming home with the coveted culinary honor the James Beard Award.
On June 13, the James Beard Foundation’s Restaurant and Chef Awards were announced at a live ceremony at the Lyric Opera in Chicago.
Chai Pani is the recipient of the award for Outstanding Restaurant. The Indian street food restaurant is at 22 Battery Park Ave.
The Outstanding Restaurant category is designated to the restaurant that “demonstrates consistent excellence in food, atmosphere, hospitality, and operations, while contributing positively to its broader community.”
Cúrate is the recipient of the award for Outstanding Hospitality. The Spanish tapas bar is at 13 Biltmore Ave.
The Outstanding Hospitality award is for a restaurant that “demonstrates consistent and excellent hospitality and service to its dining community, while also making efforts to provide a sustainable work culture.”
Chai Pani’s owners, chef Meherwan Irani and wife Molly, and Cúrate's CEO Katie Button and husband Felix Meana were present to accept their awards. The recipients took a moment during their acceptance speech to acknowledge the hard work and effort of their staff, whom they credit for earning the honors.
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Subcommittee members and tasting panelists voted on James Beard Award winners based on their “exceptional talents and achievements” in the culinary industry. Their “demonstrated commitment to racial and gender equity, community, sustainability, and a culture where all can thrive” was considered, too.
The nominees represented communities from across the U.S. with many hailing from the South.
Button also was in the running for Best Chef: Southeast.
Cleophus Hethington Jr., chef de cuisine at Benne on Eagle, was in attendance as a finalist for Emerging Chef.
The evening was a celebration of the culinary industry and foundation. The 2022 James Beard Awards marked the awards program’s return after a two-year hiatus, due to the COVID-19 and the foundation postponing the ceremony another year to revamp its policies and procedures to address issues of bias, transparency and accessibility while upholding its mission and values.
For the full list of winners, visit jamesbeard.org/awards. Watch the livestream of the awards ceremony on Twitter at @beardfoundation.
Tiana Kennell is the food and dining reporter for the Asheville Citizen Times, part of the USA Today Network. Email her at [email protected] or follow her on Twitter/Instagram @PrincessOfPage. Please help support this type of journalism with a subscription to the Citizen Times.
This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: Chai Pani, Cúrate win 2022 James Beard Awards
