Carnegie Hall of Cuisine (James Beard House nickname)
James Beard (1903-1985) was an American chef and cookbook author who influenced many chefs and food enthusiasts. The James Beard Foundation Awards annually honor culinary excellence in the United States. The James Beard Foundation is located in the James Beard House, at 167 West 12th Street in Manhattan. Many food programs and benefit dinners are held at the James Beard House.
The James Beard House’s influence on food has often been compared to Carnegie Hall‘s influence on music. “The Carnegie Hall of the food world” and “the Carnegie Hall of American cuisine” were both cited in American newspapers in 1992. “The Carnegie Hall of Cooking” was the title of a Wine Spectator article in 1994. “Carnegie Hall of Culinary Arts” was cited in 1997. “Why James Beard House is Considered the ‘Carnegie Hall of Cuisine’” was the title of an article in Mosaic Traveler in 2014.
Google News Archive
11 February 1992, The Bulletin (Bend, OR), “Potato peels away bad reputation” by Irene Kraft, pg. E-4, col. 1:
So innovative were his creations that he (Charlie Trotter—ed.) was invited to prepare the same menu at the James Beard House in New York, often referred to as “the Carnegie Hall of the food world.”
Bangor (ME) Daily News
Maine chef to perform at culinary Carnegie Hall
By Rick Levasseur, BDN staff
This story was published on Nov. 23, 1992 in all editions of the Bangor Daily News
Named after the late, great chef, the James Beard House in New York City has been referred to as the Carnegie Hall of American cuisine. If that’s the case, then Sam Hayward, chef at the Harraseeket Inn in Freeport, will be orchestrating a culinary concert at 6 p.m. at the Beard House on Thanksgiving Day.
Wine Spectator
Issue: March 31, 1994
The Carnegie Hall of Cooking
The James Beard House serves as a stage for promising new chefs and culinary superstars
By Jeff Morgan
Musicians often dream of a debut at Carnegie Hall. Actors have Broadway in mind as they read for parts in theaters from Des Moines to Biloxi.
Chicago magazine
Charlie Trotter in His Prime: A Feature From September 1997
After 10 years at Charlie Trotter’s, the chef was acclaimed as one of the world’s greats—but even that wasn’t enough.
BY JONATHAN BLACK
PUBLISHED SEPT. 1, 1997
(...)
His is a frequent presence at the James Beard House in New York City which Charlie likens to the “Carnegie Hall of Culinary Arts.” He has staged dinners there consisting entirely of organ meats or potato courses.
The Globe and Mail (Canada)
N.B. does N.Y.
SHAWN MCCARTHY
NEW YORK — From Saturday’s Globe and Mail
Published Saturday, Jun. 19, 2004 12:00AM EDT
Last updated Wednesday, Mar. 18, 2009 11:57AM EDT
The unassuming house in Greenwich Village is a shrine to the culinary arts, regarded by out-of-towners as the Carnegie Hall of cooking. And the five-course seafood dinner prepared there by four unsung New Brunswick chefs this week was a virtuoso performance.
If cooking at the James Beard House is tantamount to playing Carnegie Hall, then executive chef Stefan Mueller and his team orchestrated a rhapsody from the sea, a five-movement symphony that never let the major themes get lost in baroque stylings or excessive showmanship.
Press Exposure
Chef Ronnie Killen to Make an Encore Performance at James Beard House
By: Killen’s Steakhouse
Houston, TX (PressExposure) August 28, 2012—On September 29, 2012, Executive Chef Ronnie Killen of Killen’s Steakhouse in Pearland will return to New York City as guest chef at the renowned James Beard House. Killen, a Pearland native, will highlight Texas Barbeque techniques in a five-course dinner “The Art of Smoke.”
Widely respected as the “Carnegie Hall of Cooking,” the James Beard House is the former home of the man who paved the way for many of today’s high profile chefs and is considered by many to be the father of gastronomy.
Mosaic Traveler
CULINARY 12/16/2014
Why James Beard House is Considered the ‘Carnegie Hall of Cuisine’
(...)
Child implored Peter Kump, a former student of Beard’s and founder of the Institute of Culinary Education, to raise funds to purchase Beard’s brownstone house in Greenwich Village and create the James Beard Foundation (JBF). Today, the James Beard House at 167 West 12th Street in Manhattan is North America’s only historic culinary think tank.
“James Beard was a teacher, writer, a great connector of people, and a lot of his friends felt they owed him something to remember his contributions,” says Diane Harris Brown, director of educational and community programming at the James Beard Foundation. “Peter felt that the best way to do that was to use the house as a performance space for chefs, which is why it’s become known as the ‘Carnegie Hall of Cuisine.’”
Animal Fair
Bone Appetite! James Beard And Legend of The His Dog Percy
Posted on May 4, 2015
(...)
The James Beard House is considered the Carnegie Hall of fine dining; to receive an invitation to cook at the Beard House is, indeed, an honor for any chef. The James Beard House holds nearly 20 events each month featuring chefs and wines from around the world.
Daily Pilot (Fountain Valley, CA)
The Crowd: AnQi presents at James Beard dinner
By B.W. Cook
June 19, 2015
Costa Mesa’s glamorous restaurateur Elizabeth An, of South Coast Plaza’s AnQi, was invited to present its signature Asian fusion cuisine at the James Beard House in New York.
Known as the “Carnegie Hall of cuisine,” the James Beard House and its society are considered the most influential culinary arbiters in the United States. Annually, the James Beard Foundation dinner in New York City recognizes the best and brightest talent on the culinary map and raises funds for scholarships benefiting the next generation of culinary artists.
Los Angeles magazine
Helene An’s French/Vietnamese Cuisine Goes From Beverly Hills to NYC and Back
Helene An recreated the James Beard Foundation meal as the debut dinner for the exclusive dinner series called GourMonday.
July 9, 2015 Eddie Lin
The James Beard House in New York has the nickname “The Carnegie Hall of Cuisine.” This is very high praise for the institution, but probably nerve-racking for a chef presenting a meal at the James Beard House where anything less than the virtuosic is unacceptable.