The queer-owned Andersonville spots Nobody's Darling and Big Jones are among the Chicago-area semifinalists for the 2022 James Beard Foundation Awards.
Nobody's Darling is a semifinalist for Outstanding Bar Program. Big Jones' Paul Fehribach is up for Best Chef: Great Lakes.
Some of the other area contenders include Parachute (Outstanding Restaurant); Maya-Camille Broussard, of Justice of the Pies (Outstanding Baker); Noah Sandoval, of Oriole (Best Chef: Great Lakes); Kasama (Best New Restaurant); and Erick Williams, of Virtue Restaurant & Bar (Best Chef: Great Lakes).
According to The Chicago Tribune, past winners from Chicago include some of the city's most acclaimed restaurants and chefs, such as Rick Bayless' Topolobampo, pastry chef Mindy Segal, the late Charlie Trotter, the now-closed Blackbird, Alinea, Next and The Violet Hour.
The James Beard Awards will take place in Chicago through 2027. This year, the ceremony will be June 13 at the Lyric Opera of Chicago.