5 Hudson Valley Restaurants Named James Beard Award Semifinalists

HUDSON VALLEY, NY — Five restaurants in the Hudson Valley are in the running for the "Oscars of the food world."

The James Beard Foundation announced Wednesday its slate of semifinalists for the 2022 James Beard Awards for restaurants and chefs.

The James Beard Foundation will announce its finalists in March and celebrate winners with a ceremony in June, according to the organization.

One of the restaurants — Lil' Debs' Oasis in Hudson — was nominated in the Outstanding Hospitality category, as well as receiving a nomination for Carla Perez-Gallardo and Hannah Black in the Best Chefs: New York State category. They were nominated in 2019 in the Best Chefs: Northeast category.

Also nominated in the Best Chef: New York State category are:

• Albery & Malenda Bartley, Top Taste, Kingston
• Eric Gao, O Mandarin, Hartsdale and Hicksville
• Gabe McMackin, Troutbeck, Amenia
• Dale Talde, Goosefeather, Tarrytown

Talde told Patch he was thrilled to receive the nomination.

He said he was proud of what the team at Goosefeather has accomplished and thanked the community, "because without their support, and believing in what we do, we would not be here.

"This has always been a dream of mine, and while we'd, of course, love to win, just being recognized is an honor," Talde said.

The 2022 slate of nominees is likely one of the most diverse in the foundation's three-decade history given new categories meant to address biases, according to Eater. The new categories include an "emerging chef" award and newly configured regional best chef categories aimed at expanding the geographic diversity of winners, according to the outlet.

Find a full list of the semifinalists here.