In the wake of issues including misbehavior and workplace abuse in the restaurant world, the James Beard Foundation has made changes to ensure its award-winner selection process is more equitable, reports The New York Times. This process also ensures chefs with a history of misconduct are not considered.
According to the report, however, its newest initiative, which includes private investigation, is vulnerable to failure. James Beard Award finalist for best chef of the Southeast, chef Sam Fore of pop-up eatery TukTuk, called the process an “interrogation,” where the private investigators asked her about social media posts that potentially violated the organization’s code of ethics. In the posts, she advocated for victims of sexual violence.
Despite later receiving an email detailing that she was not disqualified for her posts, Fore fears the award could do more harm than good.
“I realize that my presence is a good look for Beard, but I cooked my way across the country to get to this level,” said Fore. “Now all I’ve done can be dismissed because someone on the internet called me a bully?”
In 2022, the foundation established an ethics committee along with a tip line and investigation initiative to ensure the awards do not honor chefs who do not meet its standards.
“The James Beard Awards are known as the standard bearers of excellence in the industry. We take that very seriously,” said Clare Reichenbach, the foundation’s chief executive. “We’ve built a process with great intentionality, that we think has rigor, that reflects our values and our mission, and we stand by it.”
However, many are dubious of the process. Katie Button of James Beard-award-winning restaurant Cúrate warns the association is delivering the “judgment and the sentence” that could profoundly impact a chef’s restaurants. Full Story (Subscription Required)
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