I’ve been spending a lot of time lately logging various awards, nominations, and victories for Boston chefs and restaurants. And today we have even more good news! In last night’s broadcast of Iron Chef America on the Food Network, our own Ken Oringer beat Iron Chef Cat Cora in a head-to-head battle. The secret ingredient? Coffee.

I’m not surprised that Ken won. For one, he’s a terrific talent. And when I saw him last week after dinner at Clio, he did seem pretty darn cheerful (though he was tight-lipped about the show). Congratulations, Ken!

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Keeping track of Boston’s dining scene can feel almost as daunting as completing the Eagle Deli’s Challenge Burger. Chowder scours the internet for the latest news on what’s coming, what’s closing, and who’s on Iron Chef.

Closing
The North End’s La Brace has closed, according to Boston Restaurant Talk. The site also reports that Coolidge Corner sushi joint Takeshima shut its doors and reopened as Blue Ocean, which has a similar menu. Thank God another sushi place replaced Takeshima. That way Brookline will continue to be well on its way to 17th sushi restaurant.

Chain dining aficionados will be sad to learn that the Chili’s in the Copley Place Mall has gone to that great fajita skillet in the sky. Mall representatives wouldn’t tell Boston Menu Pages what will fill the vacancy, but there’s always hope for another Margarita’s. (more…)

Every March, the James Beard Foundation announces its list of nominees for Beard Awards: the foodie equivalent of the Oscars. This prestigious list honors the country’s top restaurants, chefs, journalists, authors, restaurant designers, sommeliers…even websites. The foundation then hosts a big gala in May or June to announce the winners, and everyone has a big party and compares medals and the cycle begins anew.

We send out our hearty congratulations to this year’s “Best Chef, Northeast” nominees:

Patrick Connoly, Radius

Rob Evans, Hugo’s (Portland)

Clark Frasier and Mark Gaier, Arrows (Ogunquit)

Michael Leviton, Lumiere

Marc Orfally, Pigalle

These are all worthy contenders, and they make New England a great place to live and eat.

So why do we yawn?

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When most people have to work weekends, it means coming into an empty office and putting in hours of drudgery for no additional pay. Not so for Chowder. (Well, not this week, anyway.)

Lucky enough to score tickets to last Saturday’s $150-a-pop Tour de Champagne (Boston magazine was a sponsor), I showed up at The Charles Hotel a fashionable hour late and surveyed the scene: A mixed bag of giddy French and Bostonian guests, 18 Champagne houses pouring generous (read: half-glass) samples of bubbly, and some of the city’s top restaurants serving hors d’oeuvres. Yes, indeed: Another hard day on the job.

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Earlier this week, I enjoyed a terrific lunch hosted by Garden at the Cellar and sponsored by the Chef’s Collaborative. If you haven’t heard of the CC, it’s a national (Boston-based) organization that promotes sustainable cuisine by connecting chefs with local farms, hosting educational workshops, etc. If you haven’t heard of Garden at the Cellar, it’s a great spot in Cambridge’s Central Square for delicious, affordable, seasonal fare. Its chef, Will Gilson, is a young talent to watch.

The idea for the event was to bring together chefs, farmers, purveyors, and assorted hangers-on to talk about the challenges of local/seasonal eating in our short-season climate. About 40 people showed up, including chefs Tony Maws (Craigie Street), Michael Leviton (Lumiere and the soon-to-open Persephone), Tim Weichmann (T.W. Food), Rebecca Newell (Beehive), and Carolyn Johnson (Rialto), among others.

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