2 isle chefs nominated
for culinary honor
Two of the founders of the Hawaii Regional Cuisine movement, Beverly Gannon and Peter Merriman, were nominated yesterday for the prestigious James Beard Foundation Award.
Gannon, of Maui's Haliimaile General Store, and Merriman, of Merriman's in Waimea on the Big Island, were nominated in the category of best chef of the Northwest/Hawaii.
"I'm speechless -- and that doesn't happen to me ever in my life," Gannon said.
"Guess I got lucky," Merriman said. "Even a blind squirrel finds an acorn every once in a while."
This is Gannon's first nomination, but Merriman has been nominated several times in the past. Honolulu chef George Mavrothalassitis won the category last year, the first Hawaii chef to win the award in nine years.
Also nominated were Scott Carsberg, of Lampreia, and Eric Tanaka, of Dahlia Lounge, both in Seattle, and Vitaly Paley, of Paley's Place Bistro & Bar in Portland, Ore.
The winners will be announced May 10 in New York City during a weekend of parties and special dinners. Both chefs said they will likely make the trip.
"I'm gonna go; I don't think I can miss this," Gannon said. "I'll take it all in. I'll take the 15 minutes of fame and say, 'Thank you.'"
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