Here Are the 2022 James Beard Award Semifinalists from Washington

Eleven chefs, four restaurants, and one baker from Washington are 2022 James Beard Award semifinalists, which were announced this morning.

As usual, many of the local semifinalists are for the best chef: Northwest and Pacific award, but a few Seattle chefs are also up for national awards, with representation from old favorites as well as up-and-coming Seattle chefs and restaurants.

This will be the first James Beard Awards held since 2019, when the awards ceremony took a two-year hiatus to examine and change its structure in response to criticism surrounding bias in the organization and the diversity of its winners (none of the 23 proposed winners for the 2020 awards, for example, were Black). Some of the categories this year are different from previous years, and the award ceremony added an emerging chef category — for which Seattle’s Kristi Brown, of Central District restaurant Communion, is a semifinalist.

The James Beard Foundation will release the short list of nominees on March 16, 2022, and will name the winners in a Chicago ceremony on June 13, 2022. See the full list of Washington semifinalists below, listed alphabetically.

Seattle Nominees

Aaron Verzosa, Archipelago — best chef: Northwest and Pacific

Bar del Corso — outstanding hospitality

Brandon Pettit, Delancey — best chef: Northwest and Pacific

Erasto Jackson, Lil Red’s Takeout and Catering — best chef: Northwest and Pacific

David Nichols, Eight Row — best chef: Northwest and Pacific

Kristi Brown, Communion — emerging chef

Liz Kenyon, Rupee Bar — best chef: Northwest and Pacific

Mutsuko Soma, Kamonegi — best chef: Northwest and Pacific

Melissa Miranda, Musang — best chef: Northwest and Pacific

Pamela Vuong, The Flour Box — outstanding baker

Rachel Yang and Seif Chirchi, Joule — outstanding chef

Tomo — outstanding wine program

The Walrus and the Carpenter — outstanding restaurant

Washington Nominees outside Seattle

Chad White, Zona Blanca, Spokane — best chef: Northwest and Pacific

Matia Kitchen & Bar, Orcas Island — best new restaurant

Nick Coffey, Ursa Minor, Lopez Island — best chef: Northwest and Pacific