Stanley Tucci to Host 2013 James Beard Awards

The James Beard Foundation has announced that actor Stanley Tucci will host the organization's annual awards ceremony this coming May 6. Ted Allen will host the book, broadcast, and journalism awards on May 3. The theme for this year's event will be Lights! Camera! Taste! Spotlight on Food & Film. According to a release, the "multifaceted role that food has played in America's most iconic films... will be showcased throughout the night's festivities, celebrating America's love affair with movies and filmmakers' love affair with food."

To that end, chefs like Grant Achatz, Christina Tosi, Gabriel Rucker , Michael Mina, Nate Appleman, and Traci Des Jardins will be cooking "dishes inspired by a favorite food moment in a film of their choice" during the evening's gala reception. The long list of nominees was released a few weeks ago, and final nominees will be announced on March 18. You can watch the stream of the announcement live on Eater.com.

Here's the full press release:

JAMES BEARD FOUNDATION CELEBRATES
"LIGHTS! CAMERA! TASTE! SPOTLIGHT ON FOOD & FILM"

STANLEY TUCCI TO HOST 2013 JAMES BEARD FOUNDATION AWARDS ON MAY 6, 2013

TED ALLEN TO HOST 2013 JAMES BEARD FOUNDATION BOOK, BROADCAST & JOURNALISM AWARDS ON MAY 3, 2013

New York, NY (March 6, 2012) – The James Beard Foundation announced today that Stanley Tucci, the Golden Globe and Emmy Award–winning actor, writer, film producer, and director, will host the 2013 James Beard Foundation Awards, the nation's most prestigious recognition program honoring professionals in the food and beverage industries. The highly anticipated Awards Ceremony and Gala Reception will take place on Monday, May 6, 2013, at Lincoln Center's Avery Fisher Hall in New York City. On Friday, May 3, 2013, multiple James Beard and Emmy Award–winning television personality, writer, and cookbook author Ted Allen will host the annual James Beard Foundation Book, Broadcast & Journalism Awards Dinner at Gotham Hall in New York City.

The theme, Lights! Camera! Taste! Spotlight on Food & Film, pays tribute to the role that food has played on the silver screen in America. The James Beard Awards have often been called the "Oscars of the food world," and this year they are giving memorable culinary moments in cinema a starring role. Participating gala reception chefs have been asked to create dishes inspired by a favorite food moment in a film of their choice. The multifaceted role that food has played in America's most iconic films—a reflection of family, love, pop culture, nostalgia, and, above all, the catalyst for bringing people around the table—will be showcased throughout the night's festivities, celebrating America's love affair with movies and filmmakers' love affair with food.

This year's hosts have shared their love of food both on and off the screen. In addition to being an accomplished actor, Stanley Tucci is also a writer, director, and producer. He has appeared in over 50 films, including Big Night, Julie & Julia, and The Hunger Games, as well as countless television shows and over a dozen plays, both on and off Broadway. Tucci released The Tucci Cookbook in October of 2012, reaching the New York Times Best Seller list. He earned an Academy Award nomination, along with Golden Globe, BAFTA, SAG, and Broadcast Film Critics nominations, for his performance in The Lovely Bones in 2008. Big Night was his first effort as co-director, co-screenwriter, and actor on the same film, which earned him numerous accolades, including the Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award at the 1996 Sundance Film Festival; a recognition of Excellence by the National Board of Review; an Independent Spirit Award; the Critics Prize at the 1996 Deauville Film Festival; and honors from both the New York Film Critics and the Boston Society of Film Critics.

Ted Allen is the host of the primetime Food Network series Chopped, the recipient of two 2012 James Beard Awards. He also is a frequent contributor to Food Network's The Best Thing I Ever Ate. His latest cookbook, In My Kitchen: 100 Recipes and Discoveries for Passionate Cooks (Clarkson-Potter), was published in May 2012; in addition, he is the author of The Food You Want to Eat: 100 Smart, Simple Recipes (Clarkson-Potter), a collection of vibrant, all-natural dishes. In 2004, Ted Allen won an Emmy for his role as the food and wine specialist on the Bravo series Queer Eye. Since 1997, he has been a contributing writer for Esquire. Both Tucci and Allen volunteer for the Food Bank for New York City.

"It's an honor to have such a prestigious, talented, and highly creative group of hosts and presenters for this year's Awards as we celebrate food in iconic cinema," said Susan Ungaro, president of the James Beard Foundation. "We are thrilled to showcase uniquely inspired dishes from some of the most talented chefs across the country as they pay tribute to both James Beard and the role that food has played in film."

Chefs confirmed to cook at the Gala Reception following the Awards Ceremony on Monday, May 6, 2013, include:

JBF Award Winner
Grant Achatz
The Aviary
Chicago

JBF Award Winner
Nate Appleman
Chipotle Mexican Grill
NYC

JBF Award Winner
Jean-François Bruel
DANIEL
NYC

JBF Award Winner
Traci Des Jardins
Jardinière
San Francisco

JBF Award Winner
Todd English
Todd English Enterprises
Charlestown, MA

JBF Award Winner
Gavin Kaysen
Café Boulud
NYC

JBF Award Winner
Christopher Lee
Sophia's
Philadelphia

Thomas McNaughton
central kitchen
San Francisco

JBF Award Winner
Michael Mina
MICHAEL MINA
San Francisco

David Myers
Hinoki & the Bird
Los Angeles

Melissa Perello
Frances
San Francisco

JBF Award Winner
Pastry Chef
Nicole Plue
Sideshow by Nicole Plue
California

JBF Award Winner
Douglas Rodriguez
Alma de Cuba
Philadelphia

JBF Award Winner
Gabriel Rucker
Le Pigeon
Portland, OR

JBF Award Winner
Marcus Samuelsson
Red Rooster Harlem
NYC

Aarón Sánchez
Mestizo
Leawood, KS

JBF Award Winner
Pastry Chef
Mindy Segal
Mindy's HotChocolate
Chicago

JBF Award Winner
Pastry Chef
Christina Tosi
Momofuku Milk Bar
NYC

JBF Award Winner
Allison Vines-Rushing and Slade Rushing
MiLa
New Orleans

This year Brian Malarkey, Co-Host of ABC's The Taste, is headlining the Book, Broadcast and Journalism Awards Dinner, bringing along executive chefs from his west coast restaurants. Accompanying these chefs will be top talent from Great Performances and Valrhona USA.

Chefs confirmed to cook at the Book, Broadcast and Journalism Awards Dinner on Friday, May 3, 2013, include:

Amanda Baumgarten
Herringbone
La Jolla, CA

Pastry Chef
Sarah Kosikowski
Valrhona USA
NYC

Brian Malarkey
Restaurateur, Cookbook Author, and Co-Host of ABC's The Taste
Shane Mckentire
Searsucker
San Diego

Host Chef
Matthew Riznyk
Great Performances
NYC

· All James Beard Awards Coverage on Eater [-E-]