1st Look Loves: James Beard Awards 2012

What a night was had in New York City last night! Not only was the Met Gala clad with some of the most fashionable celebs around, the attendees of the annual James Beard Awards filled their appetites for excitement at Lincoln Center. Even the Empire State Building joined in on celebrating an amazing year in food, lit up in Orange (for tomato soup... one of James Beard's favorites) and Yellow (for pineapple, the image of hospitality).

It was no surprise that this year honored knockout stars like Chef Wolfgang Puck (Lifetime Achievement), Chef Daniel Humm of Eleven Madison Park (Outstanding Chef), Chef Michael Anthony of Gramercy Tavern (Best Chef: NYC), chef and author Gabrielle Hamilton for "Blood, Bones & Butter" (a book that Anthony Bourdain calls "best memoir by a chef ever") and the most talked about (and longest) cookbook "Modernist Cuisine."
 
Here were some of our favorite moments of the night:
 
Congrats to one of 1st Look's favorite cake-makers, Christina Tosi , who won "Rising Star Chef of the Year." If you've ever had it, you know that Milk Bar's crack pie is something you regularly dream about since that first bite. But more amazing than drool-worthy desserts, is that this is the first time a pastry chef has ever won this honor. And, that's no piece of cake!
 
Forget the theater, we've been dying for a ticket to the night's "Best New Restaurant," Next, in Chicago… but the line is probably about to get a lot longer. This restaurant, from one of the world's best chefs Grant Achatz and sidekick David Beran, has a rotating menu and is one of the city's most desired stubs with its ticket-only seating system. Scalpers, we're calling on ya!
 
So, since 1st Look is starting to branch out to airwaves across the nation (180 NBC markets will be airing our show in the coming month!), we might as well head to Austin and devote an entire show to the "Top Chef" and now "Best Chef: Southwest," Paul Qui. Between what we've heard about Uchiko restaurant and East Side King food truck… he's probably got a lot more up his sleeve.
 
And of all the cocktails we've sipped, there's nothing like a nice stiff drink in our NYC homefront at PDT. Though the bar's location may be secret, the secret's out on these tastemakers, James Beard winner for "Outstanding Bar Program."
 
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