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For May’s home stretch leading up to the 2023 James Beard Awards, the ‘Road to the Red Carpet’ offers month-long programming featuring weekly chef residencies from 2022 James Beard award-winning chefs
The James Beard Foundation (JBF) is excited to announce the launch of the chefs-in-residence program at Platform by James Beard Foundation (Platform by JBF) in New York’s Pier 57 beginning this May. Themed “Road to the Red Carpet,” and presented by Capital One, the inaugural lineup of May programming will feature an all-star selection of 2022 James Beard Award winning chefs including: Robynne Maii, 2022 James Beard Award Winner for Best Chef: Northwest and Pacific (Fête, Honolulu); Sean Sherman, 2022 James Beard Award Winner on behalf of Outstanding Restaurant (Owamni, Minneapolis); Brandon Jew, 2022 James Beard Award Winner for Best Chef: California (Mister Jiu’s, San Francisco); and Cristina Martinez, 2022 James Beard Award Winner for Best Chef: Mid Atlantic (South Philly Barbacoa, Philadelphia).
Platform by JBF is a brand new, state-of-the-art show kitchen, event space, and educational hub for outstanding culinary arts programming located in the newly launched Market 57 food hall—a partnership with Google and Jamestown—at New York City’s reimagined Pier 57 in Hudson River Park.
“We are honored to announce the inaugural lineup of chefs-in-residence at Platform, which provides an unparalleled stage for some of our country’s top culinary talent to share their craft with thousands of visitors from New York City and beyond,” said Clare Reichenbach, CEO of the James Beard Foundation. “These first four chefs are truly emblematic of what we aim to represent at the Foundation—not only have they demonstrated outstanding skill and craft, but they are passionate about creating a more equitable, sustainable, and delicious food future for all.”
“Platform is truly a platform for the next generation of culinary talent and mission-aligned leaders in our industry to share their voices,” said Kiri Tannenbaum, Director of Public Programming and Events, JBF at Pier 57. “We look forward to inviting more than 30 chefs to be part of this program in 2023—representing a diversity of cuisines and cultures—to lead an array of multi- day programming shaped and informed by their passions, identities, talents, and culinary journeys.”
Each participating chef will be featured for a week at a time, and will offer programming in a variety of formats and at multiple price points, including at times free. May’s programming will include everything from intimate dining experiences, to live cooking demonstrations, innovative classes and workshops, complimentary talks, and more.
The May featured chefs and highlights of programming include: CHEF-IN-RESIDENCE WEEK 1
May 2-May 6, 2023
Robynne Maii
2022 James Beard Award Winner for Best Chef: Northwest and Pacific (Fête, Honolulu)
Born and raised in Honolulu, Robynne Maii is the chef and owner of award-winning restaurant Fête in Honolulu’s Chinatown along with Heyday at the historic White Sands Hotel in Waikīkī. Robynne is a proud alumna of Punahou and ‘Iolani School, and then pursued modern dance and English at Middlebury College before obtaining culinary and pastry arts degrees at Kapi’olani Community College. She began her culinary adventure at Kaimuki’s 3660 on the Rise, cooking under Chef Russell Siu and Padovani’s Bistro and Wine Bar, in Waikīkī, where she transitioned to a full-time pastry cook under Chef Pierre Padovani before leaving to New York for graduate school. After earning her master’s degree in food studies from New York University, Chef Robynne went on to work at Union Pacific and the Waldorf- Astoria Hotel in New York. Robynne has also worked for Gourmet Magazine, Kitchen Arts & Letters Bookstore, and played an integral role in developing and teaching the culinary program at The Art Institute of New York City and CUNY’s Kingsborough Community College. Robynne is also a member of the 2023 U.S. State Department’s American Culinary Corps and a former James Beard Foundation Chef Bootcamp for Policy and Change alumni.
Featured Events:
Tuesday, May 2, 2023 – 6:00 to 7:00 P.M.
Building Our House: Dismantling the Kitchen Brigade System
A conversation with Robynne Maii, moderated by journalist Sofia Perez
Thursday, May 4, 2023 – 7:00 to 10:00 P.M. Honolulu to the Hudson: A Dinner with Fête
Friday, May 5, 2023 – 7:00 to 10:00 P.M.
An Urban Lū‘au with Chefs Robynne Maii, Nick Anderer, and Tony Liu
Saturday, May 6, 2023 – 10:00 A.M. to 12:00 P.M. Hawaiian Kanpachi Class: Raw. Grilled. Salt-Cured.
CHEF-IN-RESIDENCE WEEK 2
May 7-May 11, 2023
Sean Sherman
2022 James Beard Award Winner on behalf of Outstanding Restaurant (Owamni, Minneapolis)
A member of the Oglala Lakota tribe, Chef Sean Sherman was born and raised on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota. His focus is on the revitalization and evolution of Indigenous foods systems throughout North America.Through his activism and advocacy, Sean is helping to reclaim and celebrate the rich culinary heritage of Indigenous communities around the world.
Sean has dedicated his career to supporting and promoting Indigenous food systems and Native food sovereignty. His goal is to make Indigenous foods more accessible to as many communities as possible through the non-profit North American Traditional Indigenous Food Systems (NĀTIFS) and its Indigenous Food Lab, a professional Indigenous kitchen and training center. Working to address the economic and health crises affecting Native communities by re-establishing Native foodways, NĀTIFS imagines a new North American food system that generates wealth and improves health in Native communities through food-related enterprises. In 2017, Sean published his first book with author Beth Dooley, The Sioux Chef’s Indigenous Kitchen, which received the James Beard Award for Best American Cookbook in 2018. He is also the recipient of the 2019 Leadership Award from the James Beard Foundation. In 2021, Sean opened Minnesota’s first full service Indigenous restaurant, Owamni by The Sioux Chef, which received the 2022 James Beard Award for Best New Restaurant. Most recently, Chef Sean Sherman was honored as TIME Magazine’s 100 Most Influential People of 2023. Sherman is also a member of the 2023 U.S. State Department’s American Culinary Corps.
Featured Events
Sunday, May 7 – 6:00 to 8:00 P.M.
Decolonizing Our Futures and Our Plates
Panel/Reception: Tastings and conversations with Sean Sherman and Mecca Bos.
Monday, May 8 – 7:00 to 10:00 P.M. BIPOC Foodways Alliance Presents: “Dismantling White Supremacy Through Food” Storytelling Dinner: Dinner and Conversations on the future of being Black and Indigenous in America and what we mean by dismantling White Supremacy through food.
Tuesday, May 9 – 7:00 to 10:00 P.M.
Feeding an Indigenous (R)evolution
Storytelling Dinner: Dinner and conversation from the Indigenous Food Lab and Owamni Team.
Thursday, May 11 – 7:00 to 10:00 P.M. You are on Native Land Special Dinner: Diverse North American Cuisine through diverse Indigenous perspectives; a collaboration of Indigenous chefs from across Turtle Island.
CHEF-IN-RESIDENCE WEEK 3
May 16-May 20, 2023
Brandon Jew
2022 James Beard Award Winner for Best Chef: California (Mister Jiu’s, San Francisco)
Brandon Jew is the executive chef and owner of Mister Jiu’s, a contemporary Chinese American restaurant in the heart of San Francisco Chinatown. Mister Jiu’s combines the local, seasonal and organic bounty of the Bay Area together with classic Chinese techniques and flavors. The restaurant celebrates its place in the historic neighborhood working to evolve and define Chinese American cuisine in the Bay Area. Brandon’s training spans from Bologna, Italy to Shanghai, China and many restaurants within the Bay Area. He considers Judy Rodgers (Zuni Café), Michael Tusk (Quince) and his grandma, Ying Ying, to be his most influential mentors. Brandon has appeared in the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Mind of a Chef, Ugly Delicious, Taste the Nation and Vice Munchies. His honors at Mister Jiu’s include one Michelin star, Bon Appetit #3 Restaurant on Hot 10 2017, SF Magazine Chef of the Year and James Beard nomination for Best Chef West 2018, 2020, 2021 and winner for the honor in 2022. Brandon is the co-author of the book Mister Jiu’s in Chinatown, a 2022 winner of a James Beard Award in the Restaurant and Professional category. Brandon Jew is also a member of the 2023 U.S. State Department’s American Culinary Corps.
Featured Events
Tuesday, May 16, 2023 – 6:00 P.M. to 7:00 P.M.
A Changing Chinatown: From NYC to San Francisco
A conversation with Chef Brandon Jew who will be joined by a New York Chinatown restaurant owner. Moderated by food writer Cathy Erway
Thursday, May 18, 2023 – 7:00 P.M. to 10:00 P.M.
Collab Dinner with Chefs Brandon Jew of Mr. Jiu’s and Contra’s Jeremiah Stone and Fabián von Hauske Valtierra
Friday, May 19, 2023 – 7:00 P.M. to 10:00 P.M.
Chinese Food in America: Mr. Jiu’s x Bonnie’s Collaborative Dinner Featuring Chefs Brandon Jew and Calvin Eng
Saturday, May 20, 2023 – 7:00 P.M. to 10:00 P.M.
When Mr. Jiu Met the Four Horsemen: A Collaborative Dinner with Chefs Brandon Jew and Nick Curtola
CHEF-IN-RESIDENCE WEEK 4
May 22-May 27, 2023
Cristina Martinez
2022 James Beard Award Winner for Best Chef: Mid Atlantic (South Philly Barbacoa, Philadelphia)
Cristina Martinez is a chef from Capulhuac, Mexico and immigration activist based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She is the acclaimed chef behind South Philly Barbacoa and Casa Mexico, which opened in 2020 and serves traditional guisados and classic family-style meals. She was raised by barbacoa masters and has dedicated most of her life to mastering the tradition. Fleeing violence in Mexico, she came to the US and worked as a dishwasher, prep cook, and pastry chef, eventually losing her position due to her legal status. In 2015, she opened her own restaurant selling barbacoa and has earned her multiple awards, including the James Beard Foundation Award for Best Chef, Mid-Atlantic in 2022. Martinez has supported the fight for the #Right2Work movement, hiring other undocumented immigrants especially recent arrivals from Mexico and Central America. Cristina helped establish the Popular Alliance for Undocumented Workers’ Rights, an organization that supports undocumented immigrants in the restaurant industry. This work for her community has earned her recognition such as the Nationalities Service Award and becoming a Generation Change fellow. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Martinez and business partner Ben Miller, launched People’s Kitchen, an organization providing hundreds of free chef-prepared meals to Philadelphians.
Featured Events
Monday, May 22, 2023 – 6:00 P.M. to 8:30 P.M.
The Foundation of a Nation: Maize
A tortilla workshop and conversation about the politics and significance of corn in Mexico
Tuesday, May 23, 2023 – 7:00 P.M. to 10:00 P.M.
Mi Familia, Mi Corazon: Personal Recipes from Chef Cristina Martinez
Thursday, May 25 – 7:00 P.M. to 10:00 P.M.
Bienvenidos to South Philly Barbacoa
A dinner celebrating South Philly Barbacoa, the restaurant that earned Chef Cristina Martinez the James Beard Award for Best Chef: Mid-Atlantic
Friday, May 26 – 7:00 P.M. to 10:00 P.M.
Nigeria to Mexico: Collaboration Dinner with Chefs Cristina Martinez and Shola Olunloyo
Saturday, May 27 – 10:00 A.M. to 12:30 P.M.
Taco Party! Kids and Teens Tortilla Workshop and Lunch
Tickets to May events will be added on an ongoing basis and can be reserved on the Platform by JBF website. To learn more about our current offerings, with more to be added soon, please visit: platformbyjbf.org
The weekly Platform by JBF chef-in-residence program provides a unique venue for culinary talent aligned to the Foundation’s mission of Good Food for Good® to showcase their work and share their stories with a global audience in one of New York City’s newest and most exciting food destinations. Through the program, the James Beard Foundation will aim to highlight chefs representing a diversity of cuisines, cultures, cooking philosophies, and styles—while celebrating the people, cultures, traditions, and innovations shaping America’s food culture today. Featured talent will include everyone from distinguished leaders to the next generation of culinary talent the Foundation supports through programs like the Beard House Fellows, Legacy Network, Women’s Entrepreneurial Leadership Program, and others.
The May chef-in-residence programming, “Road to the Red Carpet,” is presented by Capital One. As the official bank and credit card partner of the James Beard Foundation, eligible Capital One cardholders will have access to tickets set aside just for them on Capital One Dining, which include priority seating and special onsite perks. To learn more about Capital One cardholder benefits at Platform by JBF visit jamesbeard.org/capital-one.
“Through our continued partnership with JBF and presentation of the 2023 James Beard Awards, including the regional Best Chef category, Capital One is able to recognize and support the best within the culinary industry,” said Monica Weaver, Head of Branded Card Partnerships and Experiences at Capital One. “It’s through partners like this that Capital One is able offer customers unique access to unforgettable culinary experiences with Capital OneDining.”
To be the first to learn about exciting Platform by JBF events and Good To Go announcements visit platformbyjbf.org and follow @platformbyjbf on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn.
Chefs who are interested in participating in this program can complete the form on the Platform by JBF website.
For more information on Pier 57 please visit pier57nyc.com.
Sponsors
Platform by JBF is made possible thanks to the support of founding kitchen partners who generously provided state-of-the-art equipment and technology to bring Platform by JBF and Good To Go by JBF to life including: BentoBox, Blodgett, Clover, Ecolab, Jade Range, Manitowoc, Middleby, Perfect Fry, True Refrigeration, and TurboChef.
Platform Purveyors support the operations at Platform by JBF on an annual basis providing product and support for our Chefs In Residence and related programming and include: Anchor Hocking Company, FOH®, Gourmet Settings, Great Performances, HexClad, Lavazza Coffees, Lyre’s Non-Alcoholic, McCormick for Chefs, OXO, S.Pellegrino® Sparkling Mineral Water, Skuna Bay Salmon, Sysco, TABASCO® Brand, Tilit, Tuxton Cookware, and VerTerra. The James Beard Foundation is also supported by official partners American Airlines, the official airline of the James Beard Foundation; Capital One, the official credit card and banking partner of the James Beard Foundation; and Windstar Cruises, the official cruise line of the James Beard Foundation.
About the James Beard Foundation
The James Beard Foundation (JBF) is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization that celebrates and supports the people behind America’s food culture, while pushing for new standards in the restaurant industry to create a future where all have the opportunity to thrive. Established over 30 years ago, the Foundation has highlighted the centrality of food culture in our daily lives and is committed to supporting a resilient and flourishing industry that honors its diverse communities. By amplifying new voices, celebrating those leading the way, and supporting those on the path to do so, the Foundation is working to create a more equitable and sustainable future—what we call Good Food for Good®. JBF brings its mission to life through the annual Awards, industry and community-focused programs, advocacy, partnerships, and events across the country. For the first time in the Foundation’s history, exceptional culinary talent, industry leaders, and visitors from NYC and beyond can experience unforgettable dining and educational programming at Platform by the James Beard Foundation—and be the first to try new food concepts at the Good To Go by JBF kiosk—inspiring food and beverage devotees for decades to come. Learn more at jamesbeard.org, sign up for our newsletter, and follow @beardfoundation on social media.
About Capital One
At Capital One we’re on a mission for our customers – bringing them best-in-class products, rewards, service, and experiences. Capital One is a diversified bank that offers products and services to individuals, small businesses and commercial clients. We use technology, innovation, and interaction to provide consumers with products and services to meet their needs. Through Capital One Dining and Capital One Entertainment, we provide our rewards cardholders with access to unforgettable experiences in the areas they’re passionate about, including dining, music and sports. Learn more at capitalone.com/dining and capitalone.com/entertainment.
About Pier 57
Located within Hudson River Park at West 15th Street, Pier 57 is a year-round community destination that celebrates New York City’s culinary and cultural diversity. It includes plentiful public open and community spaces, both indoors and outdoors, where visitors can gather for a waterfront experience filled with food, art, culture, nature, and more. Its public open and community spaces include a new rooftop park stewarded by Hudson River Park Trust, bookable community classrooms, and public gathering place called the Living Room. The ground floor is home to Market 57, a food hall with 15 vendors, as well as a mission-centered showcase kitchen called PLATFORM by JBF and a rotating chef residency program called Good to Go by JBF, all curated by culinary nonprofit the James Beard Foundation. Market 57 serves as an incubator for local small businesses and food entrepreneurs with a focus on women- and BIPOC-owned food concepts.
Originally built in 1907 as a shipping and storage terminal and reconstructed by the NYC Department of Marine and Aviation in 1952, Pier 57 has become a significant part of NYC’s history and earned a spot on the National Register of Historic Places. Thanks to the joint efforts between Hudson River Park Trust, Google, Jamestown, James Beard Foundation, RXR, Youngwoo & Associates, and The Baupost Group, Pier 57 was thoughtfully redeveloped as a community destination with public spaces and a rooftop park, community events and a market hall while adaptively reusing the historic building.
