The Blue Hen is one of a couple dozen dining establishments nationwide to be named as a semi-finalist for the Best New Restaurant Award from the James Beard Foundation.
Established in 1990, the James Beard Awards recognize culinary professionals for excellence and achievement in their fields and furthers the foundation’s mission to celebrate, nurture, and honor chefs and other leaders making America’s food culture more delicious, diverse, and sustainable for everyone, a release stated.
Each award category has an individual committee made up of industry professionals who volunteer their time to oversee the policies, procedures, and selection of judges for their respective Awards program.
The Blue Hen was the second restaurant for the owners of the Henlopen Oyster House. Both Henlopen Oyster House and The Blue Hen have earned critical acclaim, with owners winning an award from the Small Business Administration.
Semifinalists were:
- The Anchorage, Greenville, SC Annette, Aurora, CO
- The Blue Hen, Rehoboth Beach
- Brewery Bhavana, Raleigh, NC
- The Charter Oak, St. Helena, CA
- ChiKo, Washington, D.C.
- Cote, NYC
- Del Mar, Washington, D.C.
- Empellón Midtown, NYC
- Felix Trattoria, Venice, CA
- Grand Café, Minneapolis
- HaiSous, Chicago
Henrietta Red, Nashville - Honey Road, Burlington, VT
- JuneBaby, Seattle
- Kemuri Tatsu-ya, Austin Kismet, Los Angeles
- Lady of the House, Detroit
- Les Sablons, Cambridge, MA
- Maru Sushi, Honolulu
- Maydan, Washington, D.C.
Mi Tocaya Antojería, Chicago - Osteria Radici, Allentown, NJ
- Saffron, New Orleans
- Southern National, Mobile, AL
- Vespertine, Culver City, CA
- Vicia, St. Louis
- Xochi, Houston
