I posted this article back in 2011, before Houston began to receive some appropriate – and long overdue – national appreciation for the quality of its dining scene. We learned today that none of the five chefs or chef duos, that had been named semifinalists were named finalists. The estimable Anvil, which has to be one of the very best cocktail bars in the country, did finally make it as a finalist. This could simply be that those nominated were more deserving. Having not eaten at those out-of-town restaurants whose chefs were named, I cannot offer an opinion. Alison Cook in the Chronicle today offered one factor that likely played a role: that since Houston is a less touristy city than others in the region like Austin and Santa Fe, there is less of a chance that a James Beard voter will be able to vote for the chef or establishment because these voters are expected to only vote for people and places they have actually visited. Makes a lot of sense to me. There is also geography, or geography the way that the city of Houston happens to fit into the way it is applied for the purposes of the James Beard awards.
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The James Beard Foundation has eleven national restaurant-related awards plus ones for the best chef in each of eight regions across the country. These are the most prestigious awards associated with American restaurants. The way the regions are comprised, a Houston chef has the most difficult path to win a best chef designation. Basically, they face more competition.
These are the regions and their respective component states, from most populous to least:
Southwest – Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, Nevada, Oklahoma, Texas, Utah
Great Lakes – Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio
Pacific – California, Hawaii
Mid-Atlantic –Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Washington, DC
Southeast – Georgia, Kentucky, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, West Virginia
South – Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi
Northeast – Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York excepting NYC, Rhode Island, Vermont
Midwest – Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wisconsin
Northwest – Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Washington, Wyoming
New York City
Based on the most recent census data, here are the populations for each, which vary quite a lot:
Southwest – 48 million
Great Lakes – 40.1 million
Pacific – 38.7 million
Mid-Atlantic – 37.6 million
Southeast – 36.5 million
South – 34.2 million
Northeast – 25.7 million
Midwest – 25.6 million
Northwest – 14.5 million
New York City – 8.2 million
Unlike Europe, the top restaurants in this country are located almost entirely in the biggest cities. Here are the largest fifty cities for each region to give an idea of potential competition. There are many more large cities in the Southwest region than elsewhere, sixteen. The Pacific region is second with six of the top fifty.
Southwest – Houston (4), Phoenix (6), San Antonio (7), Dallas (9), Austin (14), Fort Worth (16), El Paso (19), Denver (26), Las Vegas (30), Oklahoma City (31), Albuquerque (32), Tucson (33), Mesa (38), Colorado Springs (41), Tulsa (46), Arlington (50)
Great Lakes – Chicago (3), Indianapolis (12), Columbus (15), Detroit (18), Cleveland (45)
Pacific – Los Angeles (2), San Diego (8), San Jose (10), San Francisco (13), Fresno (34), Sacramento (35), Long Beach (36), Oakland (47)
Mid-Atlantic – Philadelphia (5), Baltimore (21), Washington DC (24), Virginia Beach (39)
Southeast – Charlotte (17), Memphis (20), Nashville (25), Louisville (27), Atlanta (40), Raleigh (43)
South – Jacksonville (11), Miami (44)
Northeast – Boston (22)
Midwest – Milwaukee (28), Kansas City (37), Omaha (42), Minneapolis (48), Wichita (49)
Northwest – Seattle (23), Portland (29)
New York City – New York (1)
In the case that the size of the metropolitan area might be a better judge in determining the quality of the restaurants – the wealthy suburbs feed a vibrant inner city dining scene – here is a list containing the top twenty-five metropolitan areas:
Southwest – Dallas-Fort Worth (4), Houston (6), Phoenix (14), Denver (21), San Antonio (25)
Great Lakes – Chicago (3), Detroit (12)
Pacific – Los Angeles (2), San Francisco-Oakland (11), Riverside-San Bernadino (13), San Diego (17), Sacramento (24)
Mid-Atlantic – Philadelphia (6), Washington DC (7), Baltimore (20), Pittsburgh (22)
Southeast – Atlanta (9)
South – Miami (8), Tampa-St. Petersburg (19)
Northeast – Boston (10)
Midwest – Minneapolis-St. Paul (16), St. Louis (18)
Northwest – Seattle (15), Portland (23)
New York City – New York (1)
Though the size of the city and surrounding area might be the most important factor, there are others. Traditionally, the best restaurant cities have been large coastal ports, with Chicago as an exception. During the 1930s, Duncan Hines, before he gave us cake mix, was a top restaurant critic traveling the country who listed “New York, San Francisco and New Orleans as the country's top restaurant cities." “Over the years from 1939 to 1980, when Galllup polled Americans annually on what cities they thought served the fines food, New York consistently came out on top with San Francisco, Chicago and New Orleans the usual runners-up,” from the Paradox of Plenty, a book about eating in modern America. By the mid-1980s, Los Angeles was witnessing the rise of California cuisine and became the standard bearer for at least a decade as New York revived from the stagnation that began in the 1970s.
A year ago in the December 2010 issue of Esquire, longtime dining scribe John Mariani put together a list of the top restaurant cities in the country:
Southwest – Las Vegas (6), Houston (7)
Great Lakes – Chicago (2)
Pacific – San Francisco (3), Los Angeles (5)
Mid-Atlantic – Washington DC (8)
Southeast
South – New Orleans (4)
Northeast – Boston (9)
Midwest
Northwest – Seattle (10)
New York City – New York (1)
Not only do Houston chefs have to compete in the most populous region by far, the one with the largest number of big cities, they also have to contend with restaurants in Las Vegas. It is home to many luxury establishments – including from the top chefs and restaurateurs in the world – that can only exist in Las Vegas; restaurants that act as loss-lenders and perks to high rollers to attract them to the casino that houses them. What applies to Houston applies to the rest of the region, of course.
An award for Best Chef Midwest or Northwest does not seem nearly as notable as Best Chef Southwest. In fact, a James Beard Foundation Award for Best Chef Southwest might be the most be the most impressive of the regional chef awards.
A dish at the soon-to-shuttered Underbelly, home of Chris Shepherd, Best Chef - Southwest, 2014.
_________________
The James Beard Foundation has eleven national restaurant-related awards plus ones for the best chef in each of eight regions across the country. These are the most prestigious awards associated with American restaurants. The way the regions are comprised, a Houston chef has the most difficult path to win a best chef designation. Basically, they face more competition.
These are the regions and their respective component states, from most populous to least:
Southwest – Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, Nevada, Oklahoma, Texas, Utah
Great Lakes – Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio
Pacific – California, Hawaii
Mid-Atlantic –Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Washington, DC
Southeast – Georgia, Kentucky, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, West Virginia
South – Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi
Northeast – Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York excepting NYC, Rhode Island, Vermont
Midwest – Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wisconsin
Northwest – Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Washington, Wyoming
New York City
Based on the most recent census data, here are the populations for each, which vary quite a lot:
Southwest – 48 million
Great Lakes – 40.1 million
Pacific – 38.7 million
Mid-Atlantic – 37.6 million
Southeast – 36.5 million
South – 34.2 million
Northeast – 25.7 million
Midwest – 25.6 million
Northwest – 14.5 million
New York City – 8.2 million
Unlike Europe, the top restaurants in this country are located almost entirely in the biggest cities. Here are the largest fifty cities for each region to give an idea of potential competition. There are many more large cities in the Southwest region than elsewhere, sixteen. The Pacific region is second with six of the top fifty.
Southwest – Houston (4), Phoenix (6), San Antonio (7), Dallas (9), Austin (14), Fort Worth (16), El Paso (19), Denver (26), Las Vegas (30), Oklahoma City (31), Albuquerque (32), Tucson (33), Mesa (38), Colorado Springs (41), Tulsa (46), Arlington (50)
Great Lakes – Chicago (3), Indianapolis (12), Columbus (15), Detroit (18), Cleveland (45)
Pacific – Los Angeles (2), San Diego (8), San Jose (10), San Francisco (13), Fresno (34), Sacramento (35), Long Beach (36), Oakland (47)
Mid-Atlantic – Philadelphia (5), Baltimore (21), Washington DC (24), Virginia Beach (39)
Southeast – Charlotte (17), Memphis (20), Nashville (25), Louisville (27), Atlanta (40), Raleigh (43)
South – Jacksonville (11), Miami (44)
Northeast – Boston (22)
Midwest – Milwaukee (28), Kansas City (37), Omaha (42), Minneapolis (48), Wichita (49)
Northwest – Seattle (23), Portland (29)
New York City – New York (1)
In the case that the size of the metropolitan area might be a better judge in determining the quality of the restaurants – the wealthy suburbs feed a vibrant inner city dining scene – here is a list containing the top twenty-five metropolitan areas:
Southwest – Dallas-Fort Worth (4), Houston (6), Phoenix (14), Denver (21), San Antonio (25)
Great Lakes – Chicago (3), Detroit (12)
Pacific – Los Angeles (2), San Francisco-Oakland (11), Riverside-San Bernadino (13), San Diego (17), Sacramento (24)
Mid-Atlantic – Philadelphia (6), Washington DC (7), Baltimore (20), Pittsburgh (22)
Southeast – Atlanta (9)
South – Miami (8), Tampa-St. Petersburg (19)
Northeast – Boston (10)
Midwest – Minneapolis-St. Paul (16), St. Louis (18)
Northwest – Seattle (15), Portland (23)
New York City – New York (1)
Though the size of the city and surrounding area might be the most important factor, there are others. Traditionally, the best restaurant cities have been large coastal ports, with Chicago as an exception. During the 1930s, Duncan Hines, before he gave us cake mix, was a top restaurant critic traveling the country who listed “New York, San Francisco and New Orleans as the country's top restaurant cities." “Over the years from 1939 to 1980, when Galllup polled Americans annually on what cities they thought served the fines food, New York consistently came out on top with San Francisco, Chicago and New Orleans the usual runners-up,” from the Paradox of Plenty, a book about eating in modern America. By the mid-1980s, Los Angeles was witnessing the rise of California cuisine and became the standard bearer for at least a decade as New York revived from the stagnation that began in the 1970s.
A year ago in the December 2010 issue of Esquire, longtime dining scribe John Mariani put together a list of the top restaurant cities in the country:
Southwest – Las Vegas (6), Houston (7)
Great Lakes – Chicago (2)
Pacific – San Francisco (3), Los Angeles (5)
Mid-Atlantic – Washington DC (8)
Southeast
South – New Orleans (4)
Northeast – Boston (9)
Midwest
Northwest – Seattle (10)
New York City – New York (1)
Not only do Houston chefs have to compete in the most populous region by far, the one with the largest number of big cities, they also have to contend with restaurants in Las Vegas. It is home to many luxury establishments – including from the top chefs and restaurateurs in the world – that can only exist in Las Vegas; restaurants that act as loss-lenders and perks to high rollers to attract them to the casino that houses them. What applies to Houston applies to the rest of the region, of course.
An award for Best Chef Midwest or Northwest does not seem nearly as notable as Best Chef Southwest. In fact, a James Beard Foundation Award for Best Chef Southwest might be the most be the most impressive of the regional chef awards.
A dish at the soon-to-shuttered Underbelly, home of Chris Shepherd, Best Chef - Southwest, 2014.
