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General News BRIEFS GOURMET NEWS MAY 2014 www.gourmetnews.com GENERAL NEWS 2 Tickets On Sale Now for Eighth Annual Vegas Uncork'd by Bon Appetit Culinary festival, Vegas Uncork'd by Bon Appetit features an extraordinary lineup of celebrity chefs, sommeliers and mixologists, coming together for a four-day food celebration May 8- 11 in Las Vegas, Nev. The event offers rare access for food lovers to rub shoulders with their favorite chefs. This year's program will feature acclaimed food personalities Bobby Flay, Buddy Valastro, Daniel Boulud, Giada De Laurentiis, Joel Robuchon, Julian Serrano, Guy Savoy, Mario Batali, Pierre Gagnaire, Masayoshi Takayama, Michael Mina, Nobu Matsuhisa, Royden Ellamar, Shawn McClain, Thomas Keller and more. "Four days in the Las Vegas sun celebrating 70 of the world's best chefs, 20 of the most talented master sommeliers and 50 amazing events is my perfect weekend," said Bon Appetit Editor-in-Chief Adam Rapoport. "Vegas Uncork'd by Bon Appetit, entering its eighth year, is not to be missed." World Tea Expo Gathers the Industry for Everything Tea Blending fresh ideas, new trends and distribution channels with three days of focused buying, selling and education, World Tea Expo is the leading tradeshow and conference focused 100 percent on premium teas and related products. The event takes place May 29-31 in Long Beach, Calif. at the Long Beach Convention & Entertainment Center, and is co- located with the annual Healthy Beverage Expo. The combined expos attract around 5,000 attendees, more than 260 collective exhibitors, and top businesses and professionals from more than 50 countries. In addition to the Expo, the conference education program is designed to meet the specific needs of retailers, distributors and developers with different levels of experience, covering both trends and current events. Registration is now open at www.worldteaexpo.com and www.healthybeverageexpo.com. James Beard Foundation Announces Finalists for 2014 Culinary Awards The James Beard Foundation recently an- nounced the finalists for its 2014 awards. The annual awards honor the vanguards of American food, including the country's best chefs, authors, journalists, media personal- ities and restaurateurs. Established in 1990, the James Beard Awards recognize culinary professionals for excellence and achievement in their fields and further the Foundation's mission to celebrate, nurture and honor America's di- verse culinary heritage through programs that educate and inspire. Each award cate- gory has an individual committee made up of industry professionals who volunteer their time to oversee the policies, proce- dures, and selection of judges for their re- spective awards program. All James Beard Award winners receive a certificate and a medallion engraved with the James Beard Foundation Awards insignia. There are no cash prizes. In the Best Chef category, one of the most prestigious awards handed out by the James Beard Foundation, six nominees were listed, including Michael Anthony of Gramercy Tavern in New York City, Sean Brock of McCrady's in Charleston, S.C., Suzanne Goin of Lucques in Los Angeles, David Kinch of Manresa in Los Gatos, Calif., Nancy Silverton of Pizzeria Mozza in Los Angeles and Marc Vetri of Vetri in Philadelphia. Five eateries were named finalists for the Outstanding Restaurant Award, including New York City's Hearth, Birmingham, Ala.'s Highlands Bar and Grill, San Francisco's The Slanted Door, Chicago's Spiaggia and New York City's wd~50. A number of prominent American food personalities and celebrities find themselves among the nominees for the 2014 James Beard Awards, including television person- alities Ina Garten and Sara Moulton in the Outstanding Personality/Host category, Chef Richard Blais, nominated for his book Try This at Home in the General Cooking category and prominent food guru James Oseland, nominated for his edited volume A Fork in the Road in the Writing and Lit- erature category. In addition, this year's awards are set to honor some of the nation's most popular chefs, including Jonathan Waxman of Barbuto, Naomi Pomeroy of Beast, Sue Zemanick of Gautreau's, Edward Lee of 610 Magnolia and Dominique Ansel of Dominique Ansel Bakery. The 2014 James Beard Awards will be presented in New York City in May. The Book, Broadcast, and Journalism Awards ceremony will take place at Gotham Hall on Friday, May 2, with the James Beard Awards Gala to follow on Monday, May 5, at Lincoln Center's David H. Koch Theater. Tickets to the main gala are on sale now. Ted Allen, the host of The Food Net- work's Emmy Award-winning Chopped and former James Beard Award winner will host this year's James Beard Awards gala. Allen will be accompanied by renowned chef, author and restaurateur Mario Batali, who will serve as Master of Ceremonies. James Beard Award–winning authors Matt Lee and Ted Lee will host the annual James Beard Foundation Book, Broadcast & Jour- nalism Awards Dinner. "We are honored to have some our in- dustry's top leaders conduct this year's awards," said Susan Ungaro, President of the James Beard Foundation. "They will also be joined by chefs from some of Amer- ica's favorite food cities who will showcase musically-inspired culinary creations in honor of the 2014 Award winners." GN Specialty Foods Assoc. Announces sofi Award finalists Fruit gels from Hawaii, Sriracha popcorn from Washington state and beet yogurt from New York all made the finals in the Specialty Food Association's 2014 sofi™ Awards contest. A sofi is considered the highest honor in the $88 billion specialty food industry. A national panel of specialty food profession- als tasted and evaluated 2,025 specialty foods and beverages across 30 categories to come up with their list of 109 finalists. Among the finalists for the 2014 sofi Awards are a number of companies that have appeared before on the sofi Awards stage. Returning nominees this year include Bellwether Farms in the Outstanding Cheese or Dairy Product Category for its Whole Milk Ricotta, The Sticky Toffee Pud- ding Company in the Outstanding Cookie Category for its Millionaire Shortbread with Smoked Hickory Sea Salt, Effie's Homemade in the Outstanding Cracker Category for its Walnut Ryecakes and Hancock Gourmet Lobster Company in the Outstanding Diet and Lifestyle Product for its Gluten Free Lobster Mac and Cheese, among others. The sofi Award winners will be an- nounced at a red-carpet ceremony June 30, 2014, at the Association's Summer Fancy Food Show in New York. The event will be hosted by Dominique Ansel, the noted pas- try chef and Cronut® creator. "Creativity, innovation, and excellence were in evidence across all awards cate- gories," said Association President Ann Daw. "The finalists reflect the best of the craft, care and joy our members bring to the specialty food they create." New Trade Show with Latino Trends Focus Set for May 13-14 Sabor Latino, a new food industry trade show specifically focusing on Latino food trends, is set to take place May 13-14 at the Pasadena Convention Center in Pasadena, Calif. The show aims to fill the void that exists for an exclusive Latino trends-focused marketplace where grocers, restaurateurs, schools, hotels, hospitals and food service professionals can engage with Latino and non-Latino food product manufacturers, suppliers and services. With the tagline, "El Show Que Vale la Pena," or "The Show That Matters." Sabor Latino aims to be the trade show that brings together authenticity and innovation to promote a successful industry in which consumer health matters. Sabor Latino is produced by two Latina entrepreneurs committed to the sustainable growth of the food industry and the well-being of the Latino community. For further information, visit www.saborlatinofoodshow.com. Winners to be announced at gala reception on May 5 Continued on PAGE 6