Five semifinalists, four categories and nowhere for Orlando’s dining scene to go but up. Why? Because, say the 2022 nominees, recognition from the James Beard Foundation isn’t merely validation of their hard work and commitment to the culinary excellence, it is an acknowledgment that the city’s dining scene has arrived.
“We’re really proud to be doing what we do in Orlando,” says Jason Chin of Good Salt Restaurant Group, who along with wife and business partner, Sue, was nominated in the Outstanding Restaurateur category.
“In the past, it could get a little frustrating, feeling like the city often gets overlooked when it comes to these bigger, national awards. But we’ve all just been putting our heads down, doing it for the love and passion of our teams and guests. And it feels tremendous to get the nod.”
Finalists will be announced on March 16.
For now, meet the five semifinalists from Central Florida:
Henry Moso, chef/owner Kabooki Sushi
Nominated for Best Chef: South
The James Beard Foundation has proven itself clairvoyant when it comes to Moso, 31, whose first nomination — for Rising Star Chef of the Year — came in 2020.
“There are so many talented chefs, old and new, nationwide,” he acknowledges, along with the enormity of what having five people in the mix means for Orlando.
“It’s big! You see the things that [fellow semifinalists] Jason and Sue Chin try to generate: more concepts, restaurants, opportunities for chefs to step up. It’s a great feeling knowing that people like them are helping the city, attracting more talent, giving people the chance to shine.”
Moso’s two Kabooki locations, Colonial Drive and Sand Lake (kabookisushi.com), are magnets for celebrities in the realm of sports, music and more, and have undergone significant expansion in recent years. He’s far from finished and takes cues from people like the Chins, and restaurants elsewhere, to fine-tune what he and his team offer.
Visits to concepts like Sushi Noz in New York City have sparked interest in dry aging fish. In Scottsdale, Toca Madera imparts visions of a lush, full-service experience that takes customers from dinner into drinks and dancing — a late-night vibe that allows them to linger.
“Part of doing well is improving,” says Moso, whose Sand Lake venue, with its Miami-level exotic car show on weekends, is as see-and-be-seen as any in the city. “When you have the opportunity to travel around the nation and sample the work of talented chefs in cities that get regular recognition, you learn, you bring it back.”
And it’s not just about the food.
“It’s the host, the manager, the music, the setup. You have to take yourself out of your role sometimes, experience your restaurant as the customer does to see what you can do better.”
Moso says having more nominees in Orlando benefits the entire culinary community.
“It’s more business for all of us. It’s a great opportunity for everyone to grow.”
Evette Rahman, owner/head baker, Sister Honey’s
Nominated for Outstanding Baker
She may be the only three-time winner of the World Food Championships’ Dessert category, but the owner of this humble SoDo bakery (247 E. Michigan St. in Orlando; 407-730-7315; sisterhoneys.com) is hardly jaded. Although she’s a habitual stalker of the JBA’s annual list, she admits she never expected to see her name on it.
“We’re just a little hole-in-the-wall in Orlando,” she says, recalling the moment she realized they’d made the cut. “I had to keep checking to make sure I really read my name!”
The faces and backgrounds of the nominees may be more diverse than ever, she notes, but there is one thing that unifies them: hard work. That her small operation was recognized amid so much talent is staggering.
“It’s an honor just to be chosen,” she says.
Sister Honey’s business has grown exponentially over the years, much by word-of-mouth. Each birthday cake or holiday pie breeds new customers among the party guests. They’re perpetually two weeks out with orders and Rahman feels fortunate, in particular amid the pandemic’s effects on food service, that customers are still showing up.
Meeting her fellow semifinalists was thrilling, she says, echoing similar sentiments that working this hard doesn’t allow for much culinary exploration.
“All these chefs, I want to go to their places! But your business and your work really suck you in. You don’t have a lot of free time. You notice what people are doing but you don’t get to experience it because you’re going hard five or six days a week.”
Rahman hopes for an expansion, for a bakery/café with a one-page menu and the chance to add more items to the Sister Honey’s repertoire, but for now is thrilled to be in the mix.
“This tells me that all the passion I’ve had since I was a little child, the desire to bake and cook, made sense. It means I’ve been doing the right thing. My purpose is my passion, and my passion is my purpose. They’ve validated that.”
Rabii Saber, executive pastry chef, Four Seasons Resort Orlando at Walt Disney World Resort
Nominated for Outstanding Pastry Chef
Now a two-time semifinalist (Saber’s first nod came in 2019) the Morocco native heard he’d made the semifinals on his 46th birthday — perhaps a cosmic nod from his late father, whose support early on was a huge motivator for a young man whose culture didn’t always champion the idea of men in the kitchen.
“He went with me on my very first day to culinary school,” Saber notes. “He was so supportive. He knew this was what I wanted.”
Saber’s love of cooking began at an early age — helping mom in the kitchen, making birthday cakes with his sister — igniting a passion that’s taken him around the world as he’s honed his craft.
“[This nomination] is a reward, really, for myself and the team behind me that supports me in any way I need when it comes to achieving our goals,” says Saber, who in 2016, along with fellow Four Seasons executive chef Fabrizio Schenardi, was invited to cook at the James Beard House in New York. “It’s a celebration for everyone. Validation. Acknowledgment.”
Saber’s career highlights include representing Team USA for the 2017 Coupe du Monde de la Pâtisserie — the World Pastry Cup in Lyon, France — where they received numerous awards amid 22 nations’ worth of talent. His chocolate cake won best in the competition.
“It took me almost a year and a half to come up with that recipe,” he says. “That was really something special.”
So, too, he says, would a Beard win be.
“People don’t understand what it takes to be at this level,” he says, referencing his fellow nominees. “You make so many sacrifices, so many big commitments to do what you are doing. It takes an extraordinary amount of time and dedication to enhance your craft … It’s incredibly rewarding to know there are people out there who enjoy and appreciate it.”
Jason & Sue Chin, Good Salt Restaurant Group
Nominated for Outstanding Restaurateur
“Disbelief,” says Jason Chin of the moment he learned of the nomination he shares with his wife and business partner. “It was surreal. Lots of laughter. Then crying. Then laughter again.”
All of which was made possible, he says, by the contributions of the entire Good Salt (goodsaltgrp.com) family, a staff that spans four restaurants: Seito Sushi Baldwin Park, Reyes Mezcaleria, The Monroe and The Osprey.
“In many ways, this feels like an umbrella of validation for all our restaurant concepts and hopefully offers more confidence to our team in that we can deliver the type of work environment and experience they can be proud to put on their resumes.”
Attention from the James Beard Foundation gives Orlando’s culinary pros a license to thrill, a better environment for new ideas to thrive.
“It allows us to push it even further,” Chin explains. “It gives our dining public more trust in what we’re doing.”
New restaurants are capital-intensive. Risky.
“Once you get national recognition, more validation from food writers, chefs and restaurateurs who say, ‘what they’re doing is legit, you should go enjoy it,’ that gives us more freedom to do the things we want to do with less fear.”
Chin feels like this is Orlando’s time to shine.
“And even if we never make this list again, and semifinalist is as far as we go, I’d be very, very happy to feel that we contributed in some microscopic way to putting us on the map, to getting us recognized, to seeing Orlando as a strong presence every year.”
Want to reach out? Find me on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram @amydroo or on the OSFoodie Instagram account @orlando.foodie. Email: amthompson@orlandosentinel.com. For more fun, join the Let’s Eat, Orlando Facebook group or follow @fun.things.orlando on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter.
