Justin Yu Named One of Food & Wine's Best New Chefs

Oxheart chef/owner Justin Yu has been named one of Food & Wine's Best New chefs of 2014. That magazine's editor Dana Cowin has been revealing the winners by posing for selfies with them on Instagram. The award honors chefs who have been in charge of their own kitchens for five years or less, so although Yu might not seem like a "new chef," his young restaurant made him a contender. It's already been a good year for Yu, just last month he made it to the finals round of the James Beard Awards for the Southwest, and he recently earned a nomination for Food & Wine's crowd-sourced People's Best New Chef contest for the Southwest region because "he's leaving Texans speechless with his delicious, artistic renderings of vegetables." The Culinary Institute of America grad told the mag that he gained inspiration from a meal he had in Copenhagen, at the restaurant Relæ: "I want to do a similar thing with Oxheart. Serious food without the trappings of a high-end restaurant," and that his quintessential dish is a "stew of Queen Anne peas and fermented brassicas with Texas rice, mushrooms and caramelized sauerkraut." Oxheart has been well received by diners and critics alike since it opened. Apart from national critical acclaim, it has also been named Chronicle critic Alison Cook's top restaurant in the city for two years in a row.

Other Best New Chef winners in Texas include Dallas Matt McCallister of FT33 and Austin's Paul Qui of Qui. See the complete list of winners at Eater National.
· All Other Awards Season [-EHOU-]
· Oxheart [Official Site]