"Thanks to the James Beard Foundation for recognizing mac 'n cheese and fried chicken," said Alex Young, the chef/owner of Zingerman's Roadhouse in Ann Arbor, Mich.
Young seemed as shocked as everyone else when his name was called at the annual awards in culinary excellence Monday in New York, especially seeing as he was up against an entire Chicagoland contingent in his category of Best Chef: Great Lakes.
You likely won't find "mac 'n' cheese and fried chicken" on the menus at Avenues, where Curtis Duffy helms the kitchen; Paul Virant's Vie, Michael Carlson's Schwa or at Bruce Sherman's North Pond, but I guess Beard wasn't looking for anything innovative this year. Oh, and did I mention that three of these restaurants received one or two Michelin stars?!
