James Beard Foundation award nominations for Filipino-American chefs are recognition of their work to broaden the cuisine’s horizons

Filipino food has historically been underappreciated compared to other Asian cuisines, but four Filipino-American chefs are up for James Beard Awards in 2023

Two of them, Aaron Verzosa of Seattle’s Archipelago, and Vince Bugtong of San Francisco’s Abacá, talk about pushing boundaries and telling stories through food

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Pastry chef Vince Bugtong at Abacá in San Francisco. Bugtong is one of four Filipino-American chefs nominated for a James Beard Award – the American culinary world’s equivalent of the Oscars. Photo: AP

Published: 5:15pm, 3 Jun 2023

The James Beard Foundation’s annual awards are the equivalent of the Oscars in the United States’ culinary world, in that they recognise the country’s best chefs, bakers, restaurants, bars and more.

At this year’s ceremony, to be held in Chicago on June 5, three Filipino restaurants will be represented.

Aaron Verzosa, chef and co-owner of Archipelago, in Seattle, has been working hard over the past few years to steer his Filipino restaurant through the pandemic. Getting a James Beard Award nomination for Best Chef: Northwest and Pacific was a validating moment.

“Being able to amplify and showcase stories about Filipino-American culture, the communities here, specifically in the Northwest, and the immigrant story that my parents came with … I was just very humbled to be able to showcase what the sacrifice was and be able to represent the region in that way,” he says.

Aaron Verzosa, up for Best Chef: Northwest and Pacific at this year’s James Beard Awards, at his Filipino restaurant Archipelago, in Seattle. Photo: AP

Abacá, in San Francisco, and Kasama, in Chicago, are the other Filipino restaurants nominated, with the former scoring a nod for Outstanding Pastry Chef or Baker for Vince Bugtong, and the latter a joint nomination for Best Chef: Great Lakes for husband and wife Tim Flores and Genie Kwon.

In 2022, Kasama was nominated for Best New Restaurant at the awards, and also became the world’s first Michelin-star Filipino restaurant.