Jan 24, 2024 - News

San Diego chef named James Beard Award semifinalist

Kate Murphy

Illustration of a trophy wearing a chef's hat — Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios

Animae's executive chef Tara Monsod is up for a James Beard Award as one of the 20 semifinalists in the 2024 Best Chef category in California.

Driving the news: Semifinalist lists for the prestigious food and drinks awards were announced Wednesday, highlighting some of the country's best chefs and restaurants.

Details: Monsod brings Filipino flavors to the kitchen at Animae, an upscale wagyu steakhouse and Asian fusion restaurant near the waterfront downtown.

One of her popular dishes currently on the menu is the short rib kare kare with green beans, eggplant and bagoong peanut oil.

Of note: Animae was named one of San Diego Magazine's Best Restaurants of 2023.

Zoom out: San Diego chefs Jon Bautista (2023), Anthony Wells (2022) and Claudette Zepeda (2019) have also been nominated for the award.

What's next: The James Beard Foundation will narrow the list of semifinalists to nominees, who will be announced April 3.

Those nominees are invited to the James Beard Awards, held in Chicago June 10.

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San Diego chef named James Beard Award semifinalist

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