Voting Starts For F&W's People's Best New Pastry Chef

Last month, Food & Wine magazine announced that it was adding a new facet to their annual hunt for the best up and coming talent in the restaurant industry: a people's choice award for the best new pastry chef. Like the original Best New Chefs program, this addition will feature a group of editor-chosen chefs from across the country (between five and 10) and one pastry chef chosen by readers. To be nominated, a chef has to have been in charge of a kitchen for five years or less.

There will be one finalist from three regions (East, Central, West), and the person with the most votes will be named The People's Best New Pastry Chef. The winner will be profiled in the May issue of Food & Wine and will attend the Food & Wine Classic in Aspen in June.

Voting began today at 11 AM EST, and ends on the 14th, and the winners will be announced on the 15th. Here's the full list of nominees:

Central

· Bryce Caron, Blackbird, Chicago
· Patrick Fahy, Café Des Architectes, Chicago
· Meg Galus, NoMI Kitchen, Chicago
· Aya Fukai, Ria, Chicago
· Sarah Jordan, GT Fish & Oyster, Chicago
· Kelly Fields, August, New Orleans
· Kris Bouley, Dante's Kitchen, New Orleans
· Lisa Gustafson, Patois, New Orleans
· Danica Pollard, Lidia's, Kansas City
· Juan Carlos Tovar-Ballagh, Pachamama's, Lawrence, MO
· Dwayne Ingraham, City Grocery, Oxford, MS
· Megan Williams, The Capitol Grille at the Hermitage Hotel, Nashville, TN
· Laura Sawicki, La Condesa, Austin
· Josh Matlock, Paggi House, Austin
· Steven Cak, Parkside, Austin
· Vanarin Kuch, Tiny Boxwood's, Houston
· Lindsay Greytak, L'Etoile, Madison WI

East

· Chris Ford, Wit & Wisdom, Baltimore, MD
· Cicely Austin, The Oval Room, Washington, DC
· Arnaud Chavigny, Café Boulud at the Brazilian Court, Palm Beach, FL
· Cynthia Wong, Empire State South, Atlanta
· Pamela Moxley, Miller Union, Atlanta
· Stella Parks, Table 310, Lexington, KY
· Jessica Scott, Craigie on Main, Boston
· Jaime Davis, No. 9 Park, Boston
· Robert Truitt, Ai Fiori, NYC
· Ghaya Oliveira, Boulud Sud, NYC
· Stephen Collucci, Colicchio & Sons, NYC
· Shawn Gawle, Corton, NYC
· Michal Shelkowitz, Dovetail, NYC
· Angela Pinkerton, Eleven Madison Park, NYC
· Emily Wallendjack, Veritas, NYC
· Malcolm Livingston II, wd50, NYC
· Melissa Denmark, Gracie's, Providence, RI

West

· Joshua Graves, Ray's and Stark Bar, Los Angeles
· Kasra Ajdari, Raphael, Los Angeles
· John Paul Carmona, Manresa, Los Gatos, CA
· Kyle Caporicci, Commis, Oakland, CA
· Juan Contreras, Atelier Crenn, San Francisco
· Melissa Chou, Aziza, San Francisco
· Christopher Bleidorn, Benu, San Francisco
· Yuko Fujii, Bushi-Tei, San Francisco
· Rikki Garcia, Campton Place, San Francisco
· Francis Ang, Fifth Floor, San Francisco
· Maya Erickson, AQ, San Francisco
· Devin Mc David, Quince, San Francisco
· Ana Paliza-Brown, Txoko, San Francisco
· Kam Golightly, Redd, Yountville, CA
· Alissa Rozos, St. Jack, Portland, OR
· Baruch Ellsworth, Canlis, Seattle

· Food & Wine Announces Best New Pastry Chefs Award [~E~]
· The People's Best New Pastry [F&W]