TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. – Chefs from a restaurant in Traverse City are in the running for a James Beard Award.
After several restaurants and chefs were named as semifinalists, Jennifer Blakeslee and Eric Patterson of The Cooks’ House were the only ones named as finalists.
They are up for the award in the Best Chef: Great Lakes category. Chefs from Michigan, Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio can be nominated in this category.
The Cooks’ House is a 26-seat restaurant that has no dress code, emphasizing a “comfortable, come-as-you-are approach,” according to its website. It also has a high staff-to-guest ratio and focuses on locally grown foods.
Patterson and Blakeslee opened the Traverse City restaurant 17 years ago after working together in Michelin-starred kitchens in Las Vegas.
The restaurant has an a la carte menu, along with 5-course and 7-course menus.
While The Cooks’ House is the only Michigan nominee named as a finalist, there were several other Michigan chefs and restaurants named as semifinalists, including the following:
- Outstanding Restaurant: Selden Standard, Detroit
- Best New Restaurant: Vecino, Detroit
- Outstanding Bakery: Secret Bakery, Ferndale
- Outstanding Hospitality: Baobab Fare, Detroit
- Outstanding Wine and Other Beverages: Spencer, Ann Arbor
- Best Chef: Great Lakes (IL, IN, MI, OH): Javier Bardauil, Barda, Detroit; Jennifer Blakeslee and Eric Patterson, The Cooks’ House, Traverse City; Missy Corey, Pennyroyal Cafe and Provisions, Saugatuck; Ji Hye Kim, Miss Kim, Ann Arbor; and John Yelinek, Ladder 4 Wine Bar, Detroit.
The winners will be announced during the James Beard Restaurant and Chef Awards ceremony in Chicago on Monday, June 16.
This year marks the 35th anniversary of the awards, and to celebrate, three new categories were added, including the Best New Bar, Outstanding Professional in Beverage Service and Outstanding Professional in Cocktail Service.
To see a full list of the 2025 nominees, visit here.
