Atlanta Has Three Nominees for the 2016 James Beard Awards

The James Beard Awards 2016 nominees (finalists) have been announced, and three Atlanta representatives made the cut. Gunshow's Kevin Gillespie and Miller Union's Steven Satterfield are nominees for Best Chef: Southeast. Staplehouse is a nominee for Best New Restaurant.

Gillespie and Satterfield are competing against Edward Lee (610 Magnolia, Louisville), Andrew Ticer and Michael Hudman, (Andrew Michael Italian Kitchen, Memphis), and Tandy Wilson (City House, Nashville). The regional Best Chef awards honor "chefs who have set new or consistent standards of excellence in their respective regions," according to the James Beard Foundation. "Eligible candidates may be from any kind of dining establishment and must have been working as a chef for at least five years with the three most recent years spent in the region."

For Best New Restaurant, Staplehouse is up against Death & Taxes (Raleigh, N.C.), Launderette (Austin), Liholiho Yacht Club (San Francisco), Shaya (New Orleans), and Wildair (New York City). The award honors "a restaurant opened in the calendar year before the award will be given that already displays excellence in food, beverage, and service, and that is likely to make a significant impact in years to come."

It's Satterfield's fourth consecutive nomination for Best Chef: Southeast. Last year, he lost out to Jason Stanhope of Fig in Charleston. In addition to the chef and restaurant awards, Satterfield's Root to Leaf is a nominee for the Cookbook Photography award.

The field was narrowed from a long list of semifinalists, which included 14 chefs and restaurants from Atlanta, plus one from Athens. Winners will be announced at the 2016 James Beard Awards Gala, to be held at the Lyric Opera of Chicago on Monday, May 2. The James Beard Foundation's Book, Broadcast & Journalism Awards banquet will be held Tuesday, April 26, at Pier Sixty in New York.