It was quite a night for a couple of Twin Cities restaurants Monday.
The Karyn Tomlinson, chef of Myriel in St. Paul won the prestigious James Beard Award for "Best Chef: Midwest" at a ceremony in Chicago.
Meanwhile, South Minneapolis' Bûcheron has been named the country's "Best New Restaurant," beating out nine others for that honor. Bûcheron is only the second restaurant from Minnesota to with that award. And that makes two winners of this national award in four years for Minneapolis, an incredible feat for the Minnesota food scene.
Tomlinson becomes the first chef from the Capitol City to ever win the prize, her first time as a finalist. She is a four-time semifinalist.
Speaking to WCCO's Jason DeRusha on an episode of "DeRusha Eats" last year, Tomlinson says she's still shocked that people are finding her intimate restaurant in St. Paul.
"Kind of wild, honestly, I mean, we're so tucked away," Tomlinson tells DeRusha. "I always kind of am amazed when anybody notices us who's not from Minnesota, especially in St. Paul, you know. It's the smaller, less known city, and Minnesota definitely is - although the Midwest is having a moment now, I'd say."
They're sure to find it now - honors like this typically bring a lot of attention and diners to restaurants. The other "Best New Restaurant" winner from Minnesota came in 2022 when Sean Sherman's Native American homage, Owamni, took the prize.
Anyone trying to find a dinner reservation at Owamni knows you better plan ahead. It can sometimes take weeks to find a prime slot for dining at the Mississippi River neighboring restaurant.
Sherman and Minnesota's resident celebrity foodie Andrew Zimmern were the presenters of the "Best New Chef: Midwest" award for Tomlinson.
Tomlinson's restaurant is an upscale, very chef-focused nod to Midwestern cuisine, often inspired by "grandma's recipes" and the farms near her childhood home of Dassel-Cokato.
Tomlinson accepted the award wearing her grandmother's dress from 1941 when she was crowned the Dassel Corn Queen. Yes - very, very Midwestern and Minnesotan indeed.
This is two straight years a Minneapolis restaurant won "Best Chef: Midwest," showing some serious culinary chops are being shown off in the Twin Cities. Last June, Christina Nguyen of Northeast Minneapolis' Hai Hai won the prestigious honor.
As Zimmern noted on social media after the awards, "Minnesota isn’t flyover country my friends."
You can see a full list of national winners here.