Susan Axelrod

Susan Axelrod's food writing career began in the kitchen; she owned a restaurant and catering business for 15 years before turning to journalism. By day, she is the social media editor for Portland Press Herald. To relax, she bakes, gardens and hikes with her husband and their two dogs, preferably followed by a cocktail or a Maine beer. Susan can be contacted at 791-6310 or saxelrod@mainetoday.com On Twitter: @susansaxelrod

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Posted: March 19, 2014

Maine chefs honored with StarChefs.com Rising Star Awards

Written by: Susan Axelrod

Clockwise from top left: Justin Walker, Ravin Nakjaroen, Ilma Lopez, Nathan Sanborn, Eli Cayer, Andrew Volk, Will and Kathleen Pratt, Mike Wiley and Andrew Taylor. Photos courtesy of Antoinette Bruno/StarChefs.com

The James Beard Foundation Awards may have ignored Maine this year, but on the heels of that disappointing announcement yesterday, comes some good news from StarChefs.com.

The industry trends magazine has announced its 2014 Coastal New England Rising Stars Awards, honoring up-and-coming chefs and culinary professionals, including eight from Maine. To determine the winners, StarChefs.com “visited more than 150 chefs and artisans across 25 cities and small towns” in New England, conducting “in-person tastings and interviews,” according to a press release. The full list of winners is HERE.

“The New England Coast is the place to go to be close to the land, sea, and real food people. Chefs and artisans are opening single-minded restaurants and concepts, and the community has their back,” said Antoinette Bruno, editor-in-chief of StarChefs.com.

The winners will be feted at the StarChefs.com Rising Stars Gala on Tuesday, April 15, at the Providence Biltmore Hotel, beginning with an awards ceremony at 6:30 p.m. and followed by a tasting gala, where attendees will experience 20 of Coastal New England’s top chefs and restaurants with beverage pairings and cocktails by the winning sommelier and bartenders.

General admission is $95 per person. VIP tickets are $125 and include a private VIP reception with Champagne and Petrossian caviar, beginning at 5:45 p.m. A portion of the evening’s proceeds will go to Rhode Island Community Food Bank, a nonprofit that provides food to people in need and promotes long-term hunger solutions. Tickets can be purchased at www.starchefs.com/risingstars.

Chef Rob Evans of Duckfat in Portland will one of six chefs cooking for an invitation-only honorees dinner on April 14 at Bacaro in Providence.

The Maine winners are: