James Beard Award-winner Gabriel Rucker in the tiny open kitchen at Le Pigeon.

James Beard Award-Winning Chefs

Portland's most decorated chefs cook up a lot of attention and some seriously awesome eats.

Updated Oct. 16, 2020 4 min read

Kate Loftesness

The James Beard Awards, named for the eccentric chef and Portland native who revolutionized the American dining scene in the 20th century, are the nation’s highest annual culinary honor. With such a talked-about and delicious food scene, it comes as no surprise that Portland chefs have racked up a few James Beard Awards over the years.

Recent James Beard Winners in Portland

Here are some of the most notable chefs recently bestowed with the honor:

Joshua McFadden

Book: Vegetable-Focused Cooking – 2018

After earning a Best Chef: Northwest nomination in 2017, the Ava Gene’s chef picked up a 2018 prize for Six Seasons: A New Way with Vegetables, which features 225 recipes highlighting veggies at their prime.

Greg Denton and Gabrielle Quiñónez Denton

Best Chef: Northwest – 2017

The married chef-owners at OX Restaurant took home the top regional honors in 2017, after earning nominations for the past three years. Sample their acclaimed Argentinian-inspired, wood-fired cooking at OX.

Andy Ricker

Journalism: Cooking, Recipes, or Instruction – 2014
Best Chef: Northwest – 2011

The Pok Pok chef won Best Chef: Northwest in 2011 (after being nominated in the same category in 2008, 2009 and 2010) and picked up a second Beard Award for a Saveur article in 2014. Try his signature Thai fish-sauce chicken wings at any one of the Pok Pok locations around town.

Naomi Pomeroy

Best Chef: Northwest – 2014

Legendary chef and local celebrity Naomi Pomery won Best Chef: Northwest in 2014, after being nominated in the category in 2009, 2010, 2012 and 2013. Try her meaty prix-fixe meals at the acclaimed Beast, or enjoy cocktails and Burmese-inspired fare at her nearby bar Expatriate.

Gabriel Rucker

Best Chef: Northwest – 2013

The Best Chef: Northwest winner in 2013 gained recognition for his unique and adventurous take on French cuisine at the east side’s Le Pigeon. Additionally, Rucker won Rising Star Chef of the Year in 2011 and was nominated in both categories two other times. Cook yourself some James Beard Award-worthy food from his 2013 cookbook, Le Pigeon: Cooking at the Dirty Bird.

In 2018, Rucker expanded his empire with the opening of Canard, an innovative wine bar with sophisticated but playful snacks.

Ken Forkish

Baking & Dessert Cookbook – 2013

Rounding out Portland’s most-recognized chefs is pastry virtuoso Ken Forkish, who was an Outstanding Pastry Chef nominee in 2011 and 2013, and won in 2013 for his cookbook Flour, Water, Salt, Yeast. Get your fill of his baked goods at Ken’s Artisan Bakery in Northwest and Ken’s Artisan Pizza in Southeast.

Vitaly Paley

Best Chef: Northwest – 2005

This beloved local chef, who was also nominated in 2003 and 2004, has two restaurants in Portland where he showcases his signature simple, elegant preparations of Pacific Northwest cuisine. The seminal Paley’s Place Bistro & Bar has been highly regarded by locals and critics since coming on the scene in 1994. In 2012, Paley opened Imperial inside downtown’s Hotel Lucia, which closed in 2020 due to the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on local restaurants. In 2016, he took over the restaurant in the Heathman Hotel; Headwaters marries Pacific Northwest seafood with Paley’s French training and Russian heritage.

Greg Higgins

Best Chef: Northwest – 2002

This pioneer of whole-hog cooking and farm-to-table dining in Portland was one of the first Portland chefs to garner national attention when he won the Beard Award in 2002. Enjoy his still-stellar cooking at the eponymous Higgins Restaurant downtown.

$Toro Bravo is one of James Beard Award nominee John Gorham\'s five Portland restaurants.$