Alex Seidel, owner of Mercantile Dining & Provision, has been named as the winner of the 2018 James Beard Foundation's Best Chef: Southwest.
A couple months ago, we released the names of the three Colorado finalists in the 2018 James Beard Foundation Awards. And on Monday, May 7, the winners were announced. Only one Colorado award-winner was named. Alex Seidel of Mercantile Dining & Provision was the winner of the Best Chef in Southwest category, which includes Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas, and Utah. This marks as his first win, having been previously nominated for the award every year for the past decade, either as a semi-finalist or finalist. Seidel said in his acceptance speech, "I got into this restaurant business at age 14, almost 30 years ago ... And I've loved it ever since. So to be here tonight, with this family, I'm truly honored." [gallery type="rectangular" size="large" ids="36913,36914"]
Mercantile Dining & Provision is a two-year-old restaurant and market in Denver's Union Station and is Seidel's second restaurant. Mercantile "follows in the footsteps of the award-winning Fruition Restaurant, creating seasonally-inspired dishes and serving them in a casual dining atmosphere," according to its website.
View the full list of winners.
Congratulations, Alex! Very well deserved. And congrats to the rest of the 2018 James Beard Foundation winners!
What do you think? Have you visited Alex and his team at Mercantile Dining & Provisions? If so, what was your favorite dish? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below.