Eden Hills Maximillian Petty is up for Rising Chef of the Year; this is one of her desserts, Lick the Bowl.
Eden Hill's Maximillian Petty is up for Rising Chef of the Year; this is one of his desserts, "Lick the Bowl." Jennifer Richard

There are few greater honors for culinary professionals than winning a James Beard Award. Often likened to the "Oscars of food," the award has been honoring excellence in cuisine, culinary writing, and culinary education in the United States since its inception in 1990.

The James Beard Foundation revealed its list of semifinalists for the 2017 Restaurant and Chef Awards, and 17 of Seattle's own are among the contenders, including two that landed in the Best New Restaurant category—Belltown's No Anchor and Upper Bar Ferdinand in Capitol Hill. Two of the seven Seattle semifinalists in the Best Chef: Northwest category are located right in the same Ravenna building (Salare and Wataru). Check out the complete list below:

Best New Restaurant
No Anchor, Seattle
Upper Bar Ferdinand, Seattle

Outstanding Baker
Evan Andres, Columbia City Bakery, Seattle

Outstanding Bar Program
Canon, Seattle

Outstanding Chef
Matt Dillon, Sitka & Spruce, Seattle

Outstanding Restaurateur
Ethan Stowell, Ethan Stowell Restaurants, Seattle (Staple & Fancy, TavolĂ ta, Anchovies & Olives, and others)

Outstanding Wine Program
Canlis, Seattle
Wild Ginger, Seattle

Rising Star Chef of the Year
Maximillian Petty, Eden Hill, Seattle
Brady Williams, Canlis, Seattle

Best Chef: Northwest
Eric Donnelly, RockCreek, Seattle
Mike Easton, Il Corvo, Seattle
Edouardo Jordan, Salare, Seattle
Kotaro Kumita, Wataru, Seattle
Nathan Lockwood, Altura, Seattle
Shaun McCrain, Copine, Seattle
Rachel Yang and Seif Chirchi, Joule, Seattle