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The James Beard Foundation®, the organization behind the James Beard Awards®, the most prestigious culinary recognition in the country, announced that its Taste America culinary series returns to Seattle with a walk-around tasting on Oct. 23 at 6 p.m. at Four Seasons Hotel Seattle. Presented by Capital One, the James Beard Foundation’s Taste America® series celebrates culinary excellence and the local independent restaurants at the heart of our communities, bringing together chefs and food lovers for unique dining experiences across 20 U.S. cities.
The Seattle walk-around tasting will feature Meesha’s Preeti Agarwal, Beast & Cleaver’s Kevin Smith, and The Chicken Supply’s Paolo Campbell and Donald Adams, among others. See the event on the website below for the list of other participating chef talent featured on Oct. 23.
A chef born and raised in Uttar Pradesh, India, Chef Agarwal has been building a dedicated audience for her world-class Indian cuisine. Meesha brings modern Indian offerings to the Seattle's dining scene uses local and fresh seasonal ingredients combined with traditional preparations, which produces dishes that are authentic to both their Indian origins and Pacific Northwest setting. She participated in Taste America Seattle in 2022 to rave reviews at a dinner she hosted and collaborated on with Mutsuko Soma of Kamonegi. She was honored by Condē Nast Traveller in 2021 as one of the 13 chefs taking India to the world and has been featured on NBC’s “Today” Show.
Smith grew up in southeast London where he learned to value a whole animal approach in butchery and cookery. He later honed these skills at both Rain Shadow Meats and The Butcher’s Table in Seattle. Kevin and his wife Polly Yakovich opened Beast & Cleaver in 2019 to be the best of two worlds. A whole animal butcher shop, sourced from the best local farms, utilizing everything the animal has to offer. And a small, neighborhood restaurant utilizing everything that customers don’t typically purchase such as off cuts, organs, skin, heads, and bones -- never compromising on taste. Chef Kevin has been nominated for Best Emerging Chef by the James Beard Foundation.
The duo of Adams and Campbell have made The Chicken Supply a communal space on Seattle’s Phinney Ridge, and one that provides sustainability to their team and focuses on a flexible work/life balance. Sharing Filipino culture, featuring an amazing menu, and offering their signature fried chicken to their loyal following is a great joy for them both. Their families, children, and friends are as much a part of their lives as their amazing culinary activity and fanbase. Both chefs learned their trade locally – Adams at the Seattle Culinary Academy (SCA) and Western Washington University. Campbell is a graduate of the University of Washington as well as SCA. They regularly are featured in the culinary media in the Northwest and nationally.
Visit jamesbeard.org/tasteamerica for details and tickets to Taste America Seattle, which is selling fast.
Photo Credits: Preeti Agarwal, Preeti Agarwal; Paolo Campbell, Catherine Abegg; Donald Adams, Amber Fouts, and; Kevin Smith, Roberto Cortez