Chefs from Hai Hai, Young Joni and Grand Cafe earn James Beard Foundation nominations
Pizza from Chef Ann Kim's restaurant Young Joni in Northeast Minneapolis.
(FOX 9) - Three Minneapolis chefs received James Beard Award nominations, the foundation announced Wednesday at an event in Houston.
Jamie Malone, of Grand Café, Christina Nguyen of Hai Hai and Ann Kim of Young Joni were all announced as nominees for Best Chef: Midwest.
Chefs from Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wisconsin were eligible for the award. Joining the Minneapolis chefs were Michael Corvino of Kansas City and Michael Gallina of St. Louis.
The awards gala will take place Monday, May 6 at the Lyric Opera of Chicago.
Last year Gavin Kaysen, of Minneapolis' Spoon and Stable, took home the honor, besting Spoon and Stable pastry chef Diane Yang, Young Joni's Kim and Tilia's Steven Brown.
The James Beard Foundation is a national nonprofit organization based in New York City that has, “highlighted the centrality of food culture in our daily lives,” according to the foundation’s website.
The foundation sponsors scholarships and industry programs from the culinary world.