Portland Wins Two James Beard Awards

And by “Portland,” we mean “people who live in Portland.”

Tonight, the James Beard Foundation Awards (essentially the food world's equivalent of the Academy Awards, but with a significantly higher collective BMI and likely more cocaine) announced its book, broadcast and journalism award winners. Sadly, WW’s probing gastronomical investigations such as 25 Amazing Things To Put In Your Mouth For $7 Or Less and Nachos went completely overlooked in favor of some guy called Jonathan Gold (bloody Californians, amiright?). But two Portlanders did score awards in the book categories:

Firstly, newish Portland immigrant Kim Boyce won the Baking and Dessert category for her book Good to the Grain: Baking with Whole-Grain Flour (written in California, but whatever). Since moving here in June last year, Boyce has been quietly turning out some of the most interesting baked goods in the city under her business the Golden Oven. You can find her addictive pastries at Ristretto Roasters, Daily Café in the Pearl, and Coffeehouse NW (you want the apple bran muffins; trust me). Her now award-winning book contains the recipe to many of these treats. Here is an article we did about Boyce last year.

Our second local winner is Mark Bitterman, who won the Reference and Scholarship category for his tome Salted: A Manifesto on the World’s Most Essential Mineral, a delightfully obsessive guide to artisan salts. Bitterman and his wife Jennifer own and run The Meadow on Mississippi Ave. (in addition to their newly opened New York location), selling fresh flowers, imported wines, bitters, dark chocolate and an eye-popping array of delicious, fancy salts (bamboo leaf sea salt, Maboroshi plum salt, and Kauai guava smoked salt, to name a few).

The restaurant and chef awards will be announced on Monday May 9, where Gruner’s Christopher Israel, Pok Pok’s Andy Ricker and Nostrana’s Cathy Whims are up for Best Chef Northwest, and Le Pigeon and Little Bird’s Gabriel Rucker is up for Rising Star Chef of the Year.