2 NC chefs and a top Raleigh restaurant named James Beard finalists

Drew Jackson
·2 min read

One of Raleigh’s very best restaurants is in the running for one of the top James Beard awards, joined by two Eastern North Carolina chefs.

The acclaimed restaurant Crawford & Son is a finalist for the Outstanding Hospitality award from the James Beard Foundation, a national award. The flagship restaurant from Raleigh chef Scott Crawford opened in 2016 on Person Street, serving a refined version of the neighborhood American restaurant.

Wilmington chef Dean Neff also received a national James Beard nomination, as one of five finalists for Outstanding Chef. The chef and owner of downtown Wilmington’s Seabird would be North Carolina’s second ever Outstanding Chef winner, following Ashley Christensen’s 2019 win.

Washington chef Jamie Davis of The Hackney is a finalist for Best Chef: Southeast, a regional honor naming the year’s top chef in North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Tennessee, Kentucky and West Virginia.

After a promising list of semifinalists, North Carolina earns three total James Beard nominations.

The James Beard Foundation announced its finalists for its prestigious chef and restaurant awards Wednesday morning on its Instagram page. When the so-called James Beard “long list” was announced in January, North Carolina had a dozen semifinalists for regional and national chef awards.

North Carolina collected an impressive state-wide haul of semifinalist mentions, including several national awards. Wilmington chef Dean Neff was nominated for Outstanding Chef for his coastal-centric restaurant Seabird. The Market Place in Asheville and the Restaurant at Gideon Ridge Inn in Blowing Rock were semifinalists for Outstanding Restaurant.

Raleigh’s Crawford & Son was highlighted for Outstanding Hospitality. Bobby Boy Bakeshop in Winston-Salem was a semifinalist for Outstanding Baker and Ajja, the latest Raleigh restaurant from Cheetie Kumar and Paul Siler, was in the running for Best New Restaurant.

The Best Chef: Southeast semifinalists included Preeti Waas of Durham’s Cheeni, Daryl Cooper and Oscar Johnson of Jimmy Pearls in Charlotte, Jamie Davis of The Hackney in Washington, Jason Sellers of Plant in Asheville and Kanlaya “Gun” Supachana of Dalaya Thai Cuisine in Sylva.

The James Beard Awards will be named during a ceremony on June 10 in Chicago.