Meet Your Beard Nominees: Paul Kahan
The James Beard Awards, the putative Oscars of the food world, are being held next Monday in New York City. We rounded up some of the Chicago nominees and asked them to share with us their thoughts on the awards, their work, and how they'll celebrate if they win. We'll be running their answers throughout the week.
Right now, it's time for some words from Paul Kahan. Chef Kahan is the force behind Blackbird, Avec, and The Publican, and has his fingers in the pies of four awards: two design-related nods for The Publican, a Best Chef - Great Lakes nod for Avec's chef Koren Grieveson, and for himself, a prestigious nomination for Outstanding Chef.
Congratulations on your nomination! On a scale of 1 to 10, how excited are you about this?
I'd say 6. It’s a great honor, but I don’t put a whole lot of stake in it. I’m not really into pumping myself up as a brand — I’m much more excited about Koren being nominated for the regional award, which I also won a few years ago. I’m much more excited for her recognition than my own. But still, it’s exciting, it’s cool, it’ll be fun to go to New York.
What are you looking forward to about the awards ceremony?
I've been to the awards several times. I was nominated three times [for Best Chef - Midwest] and won the third time, and I was nominated for Outstanding Chef once before. Am I exited? Yeah. It’s a great chance to check up with friends and visit with them — it’s a full social calendar. I don’t get to check in with my chef friends from Los Angeles and places like that very often, so it’ll be great to see them. It’s always a good time.
Who Kahan's up against, and what he and Mario Batali do every time he's in New York — after the jump!
Who do you think is your biggest competition in your category?
They’re all great, anyone could win. I have a great deal of respect for all the other nominees — I think Jose Andres could win, Suzanne Goin could win, Tom Colicchio could win, Dan Barber — they're all great chefs. I think my greatest competition is all of them. I have no idea whos’ going to get it or why, it’s up for grabs.
If you win, how are you going to celebrate?
Whether I win or lose, I’m going to do the same thing: I plan to go to my friend Gabrielle Hamilton’s restaurant Prune, where she’s having an after party. Go to Prune, have a few drinks, win or lose. Though if I lose, my wife allows me to go out and buy myself something nice, so if I lose I’ll go out and buy some great old jazz albums at a place that I go to. Well whether I win or lose, I'll go there the next day and buy some jazz albums. It's this great old place, I go whenever I'm in New York City.
Honestly if I lose, I won't be disappointed, and if I win, I won’t be super ecstatic. I’m pretty even-keeled about it. It’s a nice recognition but could go either way. There is one positive about winning: If you win you don't have to go back the next year for the same award. Going back year after year – that's no fun.
Do you think there's anyone (in Chicago or elsewhere) who deserves recognition for their culinary efforts, in any category, who the Beards haven't acknowledged?
There’s millions of them. Off the top of my head, the chef de cuisine at Blackbird, Mike Sheerin, I definitely think he deserves recognition. He’s an amazing chef. I think it’s difficult for him to be nominated – Koren [Grieveson, at Avec] has been working hard for a number of years and has escaped my shadow, and it might take Mike a little longer. I think he’s a definite person who deserves more recognition that he isn’t getting.
Another big one: Blackbird's pastry chef Tim Dahl is doing desserts as wonderful as any that I’ve ever seen. He just slays me how great his stuff is. I think Tim really needs to get nominated for a Beard award. His stuff is really great.
Are you looking forward to eating anywhere while you're in New York?
I really want to go to Momofuku Milk Bar, I’m definitely going to go there. There’s a coffee shop on 1st Avenue and 7th that’s a little drip coffee place that I went to a few years ago, and I’m going to try to go there every morning. It’s an amazing cup of coffee.
I’m sure I’ll spend some time at the bar at Babbo, drink a little wine with Mario – that’s obligatory. Beyond that I’m going to go to Brooklyn and check out some beer places, since the Publican is beer-driven. Spuyten Duyvil for sure, and wherever anyone drags me. Everyone wants to dine anywhere that’s anywhere this weekend, and I just don’t want to get trampled.
Where are you eating in Chicago these days?
I don’t have much time to go out and eat! Mostly I eat at neighborhood places – last night I grabbed some roasted chicken from a place by my house. If you go there late enough on weeknights they’re just taking the chicken off the spit and it’s really good.
I really want to go to Bill Kim’s noodle place [Urban Belly], where I haven't been since before it opened. The guy who owns Eleven City Diner has been bugging me to go, I gotta go there. I still haven't eaten at Boka, and I need to go there. They’re all on my list and I don’t make it to any of them — especially in summer, most meals are at home, barbecuing, eating food out of the garden.
For more pre-Beard interview goodness, check out our Q&As with Monica Eng & Phil Vettel, Spiaggia's Sarah Grueneberg, Mike Sula, Koren Greiveson, and Brian Duncan.
[Photo credit: Michael Stryder]
