Sponsored Post: Five JBF Rising Star Chef Award Semifinalists Selected for Taste of Waldorf Astoria

The James Beard Foundation is excited to announce that it has partnered with Waldorf Astoria Hotels & Resorts for a second year on​ Taste of Waldorf Astoria, a global culinary program that pairs JBF Rising Star Chef Awards semifinalists with Waldorf Astoria master chefs for an exciting week of collaboration. The search for Waldorf Astoria’s next iconic dish continues with a fresh group of five hand-selected JBF Rising Star Semi-Finalist chefs dispatching to five new participating Waldorf Astoria destinations around the globe, including Amsterdam, New Orleans, Beijing, Jerusalem, and Orlando.

Taste of Waldorf Astoria will host five chef experiences at the following properties:

The Roosevelt New Orleans, A Waldorf Astoria Hotel 
September 28 – October 1, 2015 
Waldorf Astoria Master Chef: Mark A. Majorie, Jr., Chef de Cuisine at Fountain Lounge Restaurant
JBF Rising Star Semifinalist Chef: Jeremy Wayne, Chef de Cuisine at La Folie, San Francisco

Waldorf Astoria Orlando 
November 1 – 4, 2015
Waldorf Astoria Chef: Bernard Fiemeyer, Executive Chef at Waldorf Astoria Orlando
JBF Rising Star Semifinalist: Jamilka Borges, Chef de Cuisine at Bar Marco and Founder of Swing Truck, Pittsburgh

Waldorf Astoria Amsterdam 
November 9 – 12, 2015
Waldorf Astoria Master Chef: Sidney Schutte, Executive Chef at Restaurant Librije’s Zusje Amsterdam (two Michelin stars)
JBF Rising Star Semifinalist Chef: Grae Nonas, Co-Executive Chef at Olamaie, Austin

Waldorf Astoria Jerusalem 
November 29 – December 3, 2015 
Waldorf Astoria Master Chef: Itzik Mizrachi Barak, Executive Chef at King’s Court and Palace Restaurants
JBF Rising Star Semifinalist Chef: Joseph “JJ” Johnson, Executive Chef at The Cecil and Minton’s, NYC

Waldorf Astoria Beijing
December 14 – 18, 2015
Waldorf Astoria Master Chef: Benoit Chargy, Executive Chef at Waldorf Astoria Beijing
JBF Rising Star Semifinalist Chef: Erik Bruner-Yang of Toki Underground, Maketto, and Honeycomb, Washington, D.C.

The JBF chefs will visit their selected property for one week, spend time with the Waldorf Astoria Master Chef inside and outside the kitchen, and visit local markets, producers, restaurants, and off-the-beaten-path locations for inspiration.

Each chef pairing will prepare their recipes in New York on February 24, 2016, at Waldorf Astoria New York, for a panel of culinary luminaries, who will ultimately decide the winning dish. The final Taste of Waldorf Astoria will be featured at each of the brand’s 25 hotels and resorts worldwide, joining its storied culinary legacy with a modern classic for today’s luxury traveler.

Last year, Taste of Waldorf Astoria winners Heinz Beck, Waldorf Astoria master chef at La Pergola at Rome Cavalieri, Waldorf Astoria Hotels & Resorts, and David Posey, formerly executive chef at Blackbird in Chicago, were awarded top honors with their Celery Root Risotto alla Waldorf. The dish was a reinvention of the iconic Waldorf Salad, using an innovative technique replacing the traditional rice base of risotto with celery root.

Track each chef’s on-property journey and dish creation by following @WaldorfAstoria on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram using the hashtag #TasteofWaldorf.