The time has come for the 2017 CultureMap Tastemaker Awards, our annual event honoring the best in local food and drink. It's the tastiest food celebration in the city, with awards to top chefs and restaurants, and a grand party featuring sips and bites from participating nominees, as well as our partners, Woodford Reserve and Whole Foods Market.
Over the next few weeks, we'll spotlight the nominees in all categories of food and beverage, from best bartenders to the best restaurant in Dallas-Fort Worth.
We'll honor all of our nominees at a celebratory party on April 20 from 7-10 pm at Sixty Five Hundred, with tastings and awards, emceed by Texas celebrity chef Tim Love. Tickets are on sale now, for $45, through March 31.
For our first category, we present the nominees for Rising Star Chef of the Year. These are the up-and-comers, the chefs who are emerging as stars on the local dining scene, whether they're running a kitchen or opening their own restaurant.
Here are our Rising Star Chefs for 2016:
Carolanne Treadwell, CBD Provisions
A native of Bangor, Maine, Treadwell attended the Culinary Institute of America before working at such high-flying restaurants as Ai Fiori and WD-50 in New York. In Dallas, she worked at Spoon, John Tesar's now-closed seafood restaurant, before helping to open Knife, his steakhouse at the Highland Dallas. She's currently sous chef at CBD, where she helped organize a dinner in May 2016 showcasing 12 female chefs.
John Franke, Front Burner Restaurants
A graduate of John & Wales, Franke has been with Front Burner Restaurants since 2008, helping them transition from being known as the company that owns Twin Peaks into the company that owns aspirational food-centric restaurants such as Velvet Taco, Mexican Sugar, Whiskey Cake, Ida Claire, and Sixty Vines. Prior to Front Burner, he logged lots of experience at Pappas Restaurants, Sullivan's Steakhouse, Nick's Fishmarket in Chicago, and Neiman Marcus.
Josh Harmon, Kitchen LTO
Born in Tennessee, Harmon has been exposed to a variety of cultures that have led to his "progressive American" cuisine. To earn his chops, he trained and staged at such New York restaurants as David Burkes’ Townhouse, Buddhakan in the Chelsea Market, and Le Cirque. His history in Dallas includes stints at Grace in Fort Worth, Savor in Klyde Warren Park, FT33, Driftwood, the Milk & Honey Co., and Main Street Bistro & Bakery in Grapevine.
Josh Sutcliff, Mirador
Following a stint at San Francisco restaurant Bix, Sutcliff joined forces with acclaimed chef Matt McCallister, first at his Design District restaurant FT33, then at his Deep Ellum restaurant Filament. He left to open Mirador, the restaurant at the downtown Forty Five Ten boutique, where he works with Junior Borges on a modern American menu that includes lobster roll; deviled eggs; Cobb salad; and farro bowl with cauliflower, cherries, and Marcona almonds.
Justin Holt, Lucia
Holt has held down the fort at Lucia, one of Dallas' best restaurants, where he's had plenty of opportunity to flourish, working side-by-side with chef-owner David Uygur. But Holt has also become nearly as well-known for the series of creative pop-ups he's done with themes such as ramen and porchetta.
Lee Hunzinger, Zoli's NY Pizza Tavern
A native of Long Island, Hunzinger knows New York pizza. He's worked at indie shops and at big chains like Sbarro, and learned Neapolitan-style pizza working at Cane Rosso, the chain owned by Jay Jerrier and pizzaiolo Dino Santonicola. He made his mark at Zoli's, Jerrier's New York-style joint in Bishop Arts, which closed but will reopen in North Dallas later this year. He knows how to work a yeast dough like no one else: In his hands, it's not just pizza, it's art.
Nick Walker, CBD Provisions
The well-traveled young Walker recently joined the team at CBD, following a year-long post at the Rosewood Mansion on Turtle Creek. Previously, he was at Bazaar by Jose Andres in Miami, and notched lots of experience on the hotel circuit, cooking at the Miami Mondrian Hotel, the Wyndham chain in California and Cleveland, and the Westin in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Nicole Gossling, 3015 at Trinity Groves
Gossling's unconventional career has ranged from pop-up dinners to a business making aprons. She won a round as a chef at Kitchen LTO, and cooked at Bolsa and Cafe Momentum, as well. She also hosted a series of "Secret Supper Club" dinners, often in Deep Ellum. In 2016, she launched a business making custom aprons. She's currently consulting for a variety of chefs including Sharon Van meter at 3015, the event venue at Trinity Groves.
Peter Barlow, Flora Street Cafe
Barlow came to Flora Street from Tennessee, where he worked at Easy Bistro and Bar in Chattanooga. While at Easy Bistro, Barlow took a year off to stage across the country with top chefs and restaurants, including Douglas Keene at Cyrus Restaurant, Jon Shook and Vinny Dotolo of Animal, and Ludo Lefebvre at Trois Mec. He worked for nine months as a line cook for Curtis Duffy at Grace in Chicago, and one month with John Shields at Riverstead Inn in Virginia.
Scott Lewis, Piattello Italian Kitchen
Lewis, who studied at Le Cordon Bleu in Dallas, has worked in the culinary industry for nearly 16 years. He got his start working for Julian Barsotti, ascending from line cook at Nonna to sous chef at Carbone and eventually head chef at Sprezza, before joining Piattello Italian Kitchen, the Italian restaurant concept from Fort Worth chef Marcus Paslay.
