Whom You Know: FOOD & WINE ANNOUNCES THE 2022 BEST NEW CHEFS IN AMERICA AND ITS RESTAURANT OF THE YEAR

Monday, September 12, 2022

FOOD & WINE ANNOUNCES THE 2022 BEST NEW CHEFS IN AMERICA AND ITS RESTAURANT OF THE YEAR

Meet the most exciting emerging culinary talent in the U.S. today—11 chefs and a restaurant in Nashville whose food is highly personal, unapologetic, and extremely fun.

Dotdash Meredith's FOOD & WINE announces today its highly anticipated list of America's Best New Chefs of 2022, spotlighting the 11 most talented up-and-coming chefs reinventing restaurant culture with vibrant and innovative new concepts that are deeply personal, reflecting their social and cultural influences. This year, FOOD & WINE introduces a new accolade, naming Locust of Nashville its Restaurant of the Year. An in-depth story on Locust and its chef, Trevor Moran, and profiles of the 2022 Best New Chefs, along with their favorite spots to eat and drink in the cities they call home, are featured now online here: Best New Chefs and Restaurant of the Year, as well as in the October issue of FOOD & WINE, on newsstands September 23.

"We welcome the 2022 class of Best New Chefs to a prestigious community of more than 354 chefs and leaders, including luminaries like Daniel Boulud, Nancy Silverton, Kwame Onwuachi, and David Chang," said FOOD & WINE Editor in Chief Hunter Lewis. "The 34th class of FOOD & WINE Best New Chefs is modernizing the hospitality industry, and, now more than ever, we're honoring up-and-coming chefs who are as passionate about cultivating more respectful kitchen cultures as they are about their talent at the stove. Through their artistry and talent, these amazing chefs are reframing the dining experience."

FOOD & WINE BEST NEW CHEFS IN AMERICA 2022

Warda Bouguettaya, Warda Pâtisserie, Detroit

Damarr Brown, Virtue, Chicago

Ana Castro, Lengua Madre, New Orleans

Calvin Eng, Bonnie's, Brooklyn

Tim Flores & Genie Kwon, Kasama, Chicago

Melissa Miranda, Musang, Seattle

Justin Pichetrungsi, Anajak Thai, Los Angeles

Emily Riddell, Machine Shop Boulangerie, Philadelphia

Rob Rubba, Oyster Oyster, Washington, D.C.

Caroline Schiff, Gage & Tollner, Brooklyn

FOOD & WINE chooses the Best New Chefs after a monthslong selection process. Chefs who have been in charge of a kitchen or pastry program for five years or less are eligible. The process begins with F&W editors soliciting and vetting nominations from food writers, cookbook authors, Best New Chef alums, and other trusted experts around the country. Then, Restaurant Editor Khushbu Shah travels the country. This year, she visited 24 cities in three months, dining out in dozens of restaurants in search of the most promising and dynamic chefs right now. For more information about the selection and vetting process, please visit here.

Shah wrote in the Best New Chefs feature story: "We've all heard the stories: the endless stream of pivoting, closing, restructuring, reopening, and reacting to labor shortages, supply chain disruptions, and perpetually shifting local laws, all in the midst of an ongoing pandemic. We talk a lot about how resilient restaurant people are. But this year, above all, it seemed to me that restaurants began to find a new kind of freedom in the midst of all the turmoil and trouble: when they stopped playing by everyone else's rules and started writing their own … This year's class of Food & Wine Best New Chefs embodies this movement, delivering flavor, joy, and wonder on their own terms."

Shah, who also selected Locust as the Restaurant of the Year, says: "Locust is fully, uncompromisingly, and unapologetically itself—which is exactly what makes it so playful and brilliant."

FOOD & WINE celebrates the 2022 Best New Chefs this evening at CITY WINERY in New York City, featuring FOOD & WINE alumni Best New Chefs CHRIS SHEPHERD, SOUTHERN SMOKE FOUNDATION [2013 BNC]; ANGEL BARRETO, CHEF/PARTNER, ANJU [2021 BNC]; and PAOLA VELEZ, COFOUNDER, BAKERS AGAINST RACISM [2021 BNC]. To support the new class, FOOD & WINE will kick off the celebration with the Best New Chef Mentorship Program, which empowers new BNCs to grow personally and professionally in their careers.

Sponsors for the 2022 FOOD & WINE Best New Chefs event are Hestan Culinary, Santa Margherita, Santa Teresa 1796, and S.Pellegrino®. YETI sponsors the Best New Chef Mentorship Program.

ABOUT FOOD & WINE

FOOD & WINE is the ultimate authority on the best of what's new in food, drink, travel, design, and entertaining. FOOD & WINE has an extensive social media following on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, and YouTube. FOOD & WINE includes a magazine in print and digital; a website, foodandwine.com; a books division; plus newsletters, events, and more. At FOOD & WINE, we inspire and empower our wine- and food-obsessed community to eat, drink, entertain, and travel better—every day and everywhere. FOOD & WINE is part of the Dotdash Meredith publishing family.

Recent Testimonials by Brand Ambassadors on their Experience with Whom You Know

"I work with Peachy Deegan because she's prolific at what she does. She's a hard worker, she's thoughtful and she's tasteful at what she writes which is very important. Peachy gets the facts correct, and just that alone is worth its weight in gold."

-Edward Tricomi, Master Stylist and Owner of Warren-Tricomi
https://warrentricomi.com/

"No one has yet to express their taste for our cuisine better than Peachy Deegan on Whom You Know. Thank you for transforming our flavor into words, unlike any other before.
Sometimes WHOM YOU KNOW, really makes a difference and Ammos Estiatorio is grateful to know Peachy Deegan!"
-
Dimitris Nakos, Founder and Owner of
Ammos Estiatorio
https://ammosnewyork.com/

“Whom You Know has done an amazing job of featuring our company over many years [seven]. Peachy has worked tirelessly to create a well-curated selection of topics and brands that are clearly of relevance to her growing audience of readers. Her articles are filled with great insights based on first-hand experience. She does her research, knows her business and is a pleasure to work with!”

-David Sasuga, Owner of Fresh Origins Microgreens
www.FreshOrigins.com

"Peachy Deegan has the pulse of the nation and highlights exceptional opinion leaders in more than 23,000 inspiring and entertaining posts. Her 100,000 twitter followers are a true testimony to Peachy’s ability to inspire, motivate and entertain. She is a feminine force to be reckoned with and an exemplary example of an influential voice in today’s world."

-Mica Mosbacher, author of the new book The Hurricane Factor: Stormside Patriots and tv political commentator

"It was an honour to be chosen for Movers and Shakers by Peachy Deegan. The questions in the interview were intelligent and insightful and I thoroughly enjoyed answering them. The reaction to the interview has been overwhelmingly positive and has helped bring my art practice to a wider audience."
-Damien Flood, Internationally Acclaimed Artist
http://www.damienflood.ie/

"We were so fortunate to hit Peachy’s radar. Her review of our Warmies was spot-on and came at a great time in our company’s early history.
Peachy has such a strong relationship with her readers. She provides honest and real comments; she is truly a trusted source in a very large circle
of consumers."
-Scott Wehrs
President
Intelex U.S.A.
http://www.intelexusallc.com/

"We at Primola love working with Whom You Know and are proud to have been a highly-ranked Manhattan restaurant by Peachy Deegan since 2012, and are featured seasonally. We appreciate the fantastic work Peachy does highlighting our cuisine with her sublime writing style and the whole neighborhood of the Upper East side. Also, we are glad that she has started a Made in Italy column! If you have the opportunity to be considered for review, we'd highly recommend working with her."
-Giuliano Zuliani, Owner of Primola Restaurant
https://www.facebook.com/Primola-Canaletto-restaurants-NYC-135616799831091

"
Peachy Deegan is a gem. She is wonderful to feature our Irish brands in 'Whom You Know'! The articles are beautifully and passionately presented, bringing products and brands to life, making both relevant and fun for her many faithful followers to read. I am immensely proud for our hand-crafted products to be included in this venue!"

-
Bill Follett
President, Belleek Group North America
www.Belleek.com

"As you know from my past features, Peachy Deegan and I were in the same class at Boston College prior to either of us becoming entrepreneurs. When we played together on the BC Alumni softball team in Central Park years ago, she mentioned she could not find a great dentist in Manhattan and could often be found networking on her phone in the outfield hiding from the ball. She was my second patient ever in 2006 when I opened my dental practice; I was one of the first sponsors on Whom You Know and the first Mover and Shaker featured in 2009 and have worked with her continuously since. She's even talked her friends that are doctors into being my patients, and they subsequently send their hospital colleagues. I don't know anyone that is as great of a networker and writer as Peachy, nevermind that she is upstanding and always good for her word. Cosmopolitan Dental is so happy to be in the company of the caliber of major brands she works with today, and although she will tell you a million ways to get your teeth dirty between Peachy's Picks, Terrific Takeout and Peachy's Pantry, Peachy Deegan will tell you there is only one way to get your teeth clean!"
-Dr. Garo Nazarian, Founder and Owner of Cosmopolitan Dental
http://cosmopolitandental.com/