The prestigious James Beard Awards finally announced their nominees for this year’s Restaurant and Chef awards, and three Filipino-American chefs have successfully made it to the list. US-based chefs Vince Bugtong and Margarita Manzke are among the finalists for the Outstanding Pastry Chef or Baker title, while Aaron Verzosa was nominated for the Best Chef in the Northwest and Pacific.
Last Wednesday, the James Beard Foundation also announced their nominees for the Media Awards which include celebrity chef and content creator Erwan Heussaff. He was nominated under the Social Media Account category which recognizes "excellence in a single food-related post, or compilation of up to three posts, that clearly represents the intention of the Facebook page, Twitter account, Instagram feed, or other social media format."
The winners of the James Beard Awards are decided by more than 600 judges across the United States including restaurant critics, editors, and culinary educators. Only the most exceptional and talented chefs are recognized by the prestigious award which is why it’s incredible that these Filipino chefs made it to the nominees. In fact, two of these chefs have already been nominated for the James Beard Award in previous years.
Get to know these talented culinary experts here:
Vince Bugtong
Vince Bugtong is the pastry chef at Restaurant Abacá, a contemporary Filipino restaurant in San Francisco that serves an enticing menu of Filipino cuisine made with California’s best ingredients. Bugtong is known for crafting mouthwatering desserts diffused with classic Asian flavors such as the Salted Egg Yema Cake, Guava Sorbet, Calamansi Jam, and Coconut Espuma. Before he became the pastry chef at Restaurant Abacá, Bugtong previously worked at distinguished restaurants and bars like La Folie, Viridian, and Breadbelly.
Margarita Manzke
Born and raised in the Philippines, Margarita Manzke began her culinary career in Los Angeles by working at some of the city’s most renowned restaurants including Patina, Spago, and Mélisse. Together with her husband, Manzke opened several critically-acclaimed dining concepts such as Bouchée, Cantinetta Luca, l’Auberge Carmel, Petty Cash Taqueria, Sari Sari Store, and République. République served as her main stage for showcasing her distinctive concoctions that win the taste buds of many customers in LA.
Manzke’s passion for culinary began at an early age, having been accustomed to the busy kitchen of a Subic resort owned by her parents in the Philippines. In 2012, she co-founded the Wildflour Cafe + Bakery in Manila with her sister Ana Lorenzana de Ocampo. She studied in culinary institutes in London and New York, and from there, she slowly worked her way up to becoming one of the most well-known pastry chefs in the United States. On top of that, Manzke also published a recipe cookbook called “Baking at République” in 2019. Through her hard work and dedication, Manzke established a name for herself in the culinary scene, making her truly worthy of being recognized by the James Beard Awards. In fact, it’s not her first time being nominated for the prestigious award, having been nominated eight times in the past.
Aaron Verzosa
Aaron Verzosa is a Filipino-American chef born and raised in the Pacific Northwest. After studying linguistics at the University of Washington, he attended the Seattle Culinary Academy while working at the Spanish restaurant, The Harvest Vine. In 2017, he established ILAW, a coalition of Filipino food and beverage professionals that seeks to “empower Filipino-owned food and beverage business by providing opportunities for collaboration and promotion of Filipino cuisine”.
In 2018, Verzosa and his wife, Amber Manuguid, opened a restaurant in Seattle called Archipelago which has earned various awards and recognitions. This includes the Eater Award's Restaurant of the Year in 2019 and the New York Times America’s Favorite Restaurants list. Like Margarita Manzke, Verzosa is not a first-time nominee for the James Beard Awards as he was also nominated for the Best Chef: Northwest and Pacific category in the previous years.
Erwan Heussaff
Erwan Heussaff is a celebrity chef and content creator with over 3.21 million subscribers on Youtube. He is passionate about documenting his food and travel escapades which earned him a place on the nominee list of the prestigious James Beard Media Awards. Erwan's channel called FEATR (Food, Encounter, and Travel) showcases the local culinary scene in the Philippines. He features underrated cuisines and food destinations from different parts of the country and invites other Filipino culinary experts to his channel. If you follow Erwan on his socials, you'll know that his nomination is well-deserved as he the number one promoter of Filipino culture and cuisines on the internet.
