R5 Local Foodies and Writers Share Their Personal Picks for Local James Beard Winners

• Mulino’s of Westchester
(White Plains, mulinosny.com)
FOR: Consistency Through the Years
NOMINATED BY: Ex-Chef, Food Writer, and New England Culinary Group Director, Linda Kavanagh
     “Since I was a child, nothing has changed at this stalwart, and that’s a good thing. The food is unfailing—real Italian cuisine sans pretense. Even their holiday winter wonderland still blows me away to this day.”

• Anthony Goncalves 42 The Restaurant (White Plains, 42therestaurant.com) FOR: Most Innovative Chef NOMINATED BY: Private Chef and Freelance Food Writer Rachel Mariani      “He’s terrific at keeping food interesting, new, and yet still approachable for the less venturesome diner.”

(Your Name Here) Beer

Local Restaurants and Grocers Are Offering Proprietary Beers.

Back in the day, all a restaurant needed was to pay a designer for a logo to use on some matches. Nowadays, restaurants (and grocery stores) are stepping up the branding with proprietary, craft-brewed beers. Says Joe DeCicco, scion of the local DeCicco grocery store dynasty, whose beers, made with Captain Lawrence Brewing Company, include Limone Luppulo, proprietary beers “offer a unique product that brings customers in. DeCicco’s Session IPA (brewed by Sixpoint), a good drinking beer with a sweet, malty finish, also has enough hops to offer some bite, while the Polpettina Pilsner (brewed by Captain Lawrence) is a lighter-flavored beer that pairs well with pizza and fries. Hops (as well as herbs, honey, and some vegetables) grown at Blue Hill at Stone Barns provide the flavor for a series of six beers brewed by Kelso of Brooklyn.