Tastemakers 2013
CultureMap announces nominees for 2013 Tastemaker Awards
Spring means food season in Austin, and to whet your appetite, CultureMap announces that the 2013 Tastemaker Awards will take place Thursday, April 11.
Today, CultureMap also announced the nominees for its second annual Tastemaker Awards, celebrating the best of Austin's culinary and cocktail scene. Benefiting the Austin Food and Wine Alliance, the Tastemaker Awards is a ceremony and celebration recognizing the achievements of the area’s top restaurants, chefs, bartenders and brewers.
The 2013 CultureMap Tastemaker Awards will take place at the Driskill Hotel, featuring the opportunity for food-lovers to mingle with many of the nominees, while sampling food and local spirits from the city’s top restaurants and vendors.
The evening will culminate in a highly-anticipated awards program honoring Austin’s acclaimed 2013 CultureMap Tastemakers in the following categories: Restaurant, Chef, Pastry Chef, Brewery, Craft Bartender and Sommelier/Beverage Director.
After its inaugural sell-out event, the event is making a mark on the local culinary scene. “We expect this event will soon have the credibility of other national culinary awards,” said CultureMap Food and Drink Editor Jessica Dupuy. “Having a Tastemaker is something Austin’s culinary professionals can be proud to earn because it’s awarded by their highly respected and highly experienced peers.”
Nominees were selected by a panel of 12 highly respected Austin culinary experts. Final votes will be tabulated by accounting firm Maxwell, Locke and Ritter and announced live at April 11 event.
The full list of nominees is as follows:
Restaurant: Barley Swine, Congress, The Carillon, La Condesa, Lenoir
Chef: Shawn Cirkiel (The Backspace, Parkside, Olive & June), Tyson Cole (Uchi, Uchiko), Bryce Gilmore (Barley Swine), Todd Duplechan (Lenoir), Josh Watkins (The Carillon)
Pastry Chef: Steven Cak (The Backspace, Parkside, Olive & June), Jodi Elliott (Foreign & Domestic), Plinio Sandalio (The Carillon), Laura Sawicki (La Condesa), Jessica Maher (Lenoir)
Sommelier/Beverage Director: Bill Elsey (Red Room Lounge) | Chris McFall (Paggi House) | Mark Sayre (Trio), Scott Ota (Driskil) | Nathan Prater (Driskill)
Brewery: Austin Beerworks, Hops and Grain, Jester King, Real Ale, Thirsty Planet
Craft Bartender: Jason Stevens (Bar Congress), Josh Loving (Clark’s), Tacy Rowland (Drink.Well), Steven Robbins (Contigo), Brian Dressel (Midnight Cowboy)
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Tickets are on sale now for the 2013 CultureMap Tastemaker Awards. General admission tickets are available for $50 each; VIP tickets, which include an exclusive pre-party and private bar, are available for $100 each.
Sponsored by the Driskill, Whole Foods Market, Ben E. Keith and Cadillac.