What’s the latest in top luxury restaurant news now?

Every month, our Food Editor Nicole Douillet shares her top 5 insights on news and headlines from the world of restaurants, food and wine. So if you’ve got foodie friends or family members (or if you yourself are one), here’s what you need to know for the month of April 2018. Curious about big events in the world of food and drink this month? Click here.

1. This month, the James Beard Foundation (JBF) announced its short list of finalists for the prestigious JBF Awards (think of them as the Oscars of the food world). The Foundation took the #MeToo movement seriously, asking its voting committee to consider the behavior of and culture created by restaurateurs, chefs, and beverage directors when making their nominations. The result is the most diverse group of chefs ever nominated, and that diversity has continued into the list of finalists. Restaurant and chef winners will be announced at the JBF Gala in Chicago in May 7, 2018. Media award winners will be announced at a separate event in New York on April 27, 2018.

2. If you don’t already have one, now’s the time to apply for an American Express card. What does having an AmEx have to do with restaurant news, you ask? Eleven Madison Park, the number one restaurant in the world per the San Pellegrino 50 Best list, has announced its return to East Hampton this summer. The seasonal pop-up EMP Summer House is a partnership with AmEx, the only card accepted there. Trust us, it’s worth the trouble of adding a card to your wallet. And, as if this wasn’t exciting enough, they also announced a second partnership with American Express, aptly named EMP Winter House, which will be popping up next winter in Aspen.

3. Celebrity chef, restaurateur and TV host David Chang is launching a new media company, Majordomo Media. You may have eaten Chang’s food at one of his Momofuku restaurants in New York, Toronto, or Sydney, or maybe you’ve seen him on his new Netflix hit Ugly Delicious. If so, you know that Chang isn’t new to pushing boundaries and isn’t afraid of reinvention. He launched and shuttered the magazine Lucky Peach, and now he’s bringing some of the senior staff from the defunct publication over to his new media venture. Expect Majordomo Media to be a destination for food and culture content unlike what you’re used to.

4. Noma, one of the top restaurants in the world, closed at the end of 2016 and auctioned off everything in its original space. But that wasn’t its swan song. Chef and owner Rene Redzepi announced the closure and plans for Noma version 2.0, and at about the same time announced a Noma world tour of sorts. He took the entire Noma staff to the resort destination Tulum in Mexico, where lucky diners were treated to Redzepi’s signature playful food, but using the native ingredients and flavors of Mexico. Now back in his native Denmark, Redzepi has reopened Noma in a newly-conceived space. Early reports are that this incarnation has the same imagination as the old, but with even more exotic dishes. This is reason enough to add Copenhagen to your summer travel plans!

5. Curtis Stone’s highly-regarded Beverly Hills restaurant, Maude, changed course in 2018, moving from monthly one-ingredient-focused tasting menus to quarterly menus focused on specific wine regions. The first regional menu celebrated the food of the Rioja region of Spain. This spring the menu will transition to a $125, 10 course, Burgundy-inspired menu. Burgundy is one of the most spectacular wine regions in the world, and Stone and his team will showcase some of the rarest and most expensive Burgundian wines through three wine pairing options: the Villages pairing for $125, the Premier Cru for $250, or the Grand Cru tasting for $500. Reservations for the Burgundy menu are now available on Tock.

Nicole Douillet is Dandelion Chandelier’s Food Editor. In addition to sharing her love of all things food with our readers, Nicole is a finance executive who has spent nearly 18 years on Wall Street in a variety of roles. She began her career as the first woman hired as a trader on the block trading desk at UBS.  For over 13 years, Nicole was a quantitative trader and portfolio manager on the proprietary trading desk at Credit Suisse. She then served as Head of Product Innovation and LGBT Strategy for Wealth Management Private Banking New Markets at Credit Suisse. Most recently, Nicole co-founded Reboot Investing, Inc. where she served as the Chief Operating Officer and Chief Compliance Officer. A recognized leader in socially responsible investing, Nicole created the ground-breaking Credit Suisse LGBT Equality Index ® and co-authored “What’s the Effect of Pro-LGBT Policy on Stock Price?” for the Harvard Business Review in 2014.  Nicole currently serves on the Advisory Council for Action Against Hunger | ACF International. She is a former junior Olympic skier, food and drink aficionado, serial restaurant regular, and chili cook-off champion. She and her wife live in Brooklyn with their son, whose favorite restaurant is Lilia. Nicole is a graduate of the University of Notre Dame.

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