Las Vegas chefs named Beard Award semifinalists

Chefs are known for working late, so most don’t pop out of bed early on the lookout for press releases — even when they are mentioned in them.

Such was the case for two of Las Vegas’ most acclaimed top toques — Jamie Tran and Gina Marinelli — when they were announced by the venerable James Beard Foundation as semifinalists for the 2022 Restaurant and Chef Awards in the Best Chef: Southwest category, along with Aibin Xing of Big Dan Shanxi Taste.

Tran, owner-chef at the popular Southeast Asian-influenced The Black Sheep, 8680 W. Warm Springs Road, had no idea she had been nominated as she started her day.

“I was shocked. My friend texted me, and I was like ‘What the hell? It’s probably the wrong Jamie.’ She said, ‘No, it’s you,’ ” Tran said Wednesday.

She thought it might be an early April Fool’s trick, but her friend soon verified the happy news.

“She sent me a video of her looking at the nomination on her laptop,” Tran said.

Marinelli, chef-partner at the Italian-focused La Strega Trattoria, 3555 S. Town Center Drive, and the recently opened Harlo Steakhouse & Bar, 1720 Festival Plaza Drive, also got underway Wednesday without knowing about her nomination. Then, like a scene from a comedic movie, the announcement arrived from a certain restaurant-owning friend.

“I actually found out from Jamie,” Marinelli said Wednesday, noting a playfully salty text message sent by Tran.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about. It’s 8:30 in the morning,” Marinelli typed in response. Then she looked it up. “It was fantastic,” Marinelli said.

“There’s been a lot of thankfulness and gratefulness,” she added — and some celebratory glasses of wine.

Aibin Xing, owner-chef at Big Dan Shanxi Taste, 5115 Spring Mountain Road, found out about his nomination in a less familiar fashion: from the Review-Journal. We stopped by the Chinatown mini-eatery to discover his reaction. Xing was at home, however, and only speaks Mandarin. Thankfully, Dan Xing, his daughter who helms the order counter, interpreted the message and delivered it to her family later Wednesday evening.

Tran and Marinelli are well-known in Las Vegas and beyond. Tran began her career in Strip kitchens like Aureole, the Venetian banquets department and DB Brasserie. Last year, in 2021, her profile expanded to international proportions when she competed on Bravo’s “Top Chef.” She also appeared in the Netflix series “Fresh, Fried, and Crispy.” Marinelli cut her culinary teeth at Nobhill Tavern, American Fish, Sage and D.O.C.G Enoteca. Her profile also went worldwide in 2021 when she appeared in the Discovery+ streaming show, “The Globe.”

Xing isn’t a well-known gastronomic professional about town, at least for now. But his snug restaurant — which is located in the SF Supermarket in Chinatown’s Pacific Asian Plaza — has been gaining a dedicated following. With his nomination, Big Dan Shanxi Taste’s public profile is sure to rise.

Las Vegas wasn’t the only Nevada city to get attention from the James Beard Foundation this year. In Reno, Troy Cannan of LuLou’s Restaurant and Kwok Chen of Kwok’s Bistro were also nominated in the Southwest category. Additionally, Reno’s Chapel Tavern was nominated for Outstanding Bar Program.

In addition to Nevada, the Southwest award region covers Arizona, New Mexico, Oklahoma. Finalists will be revealed on March 16. Winners will be celebrated at the James Beard Restaurant and Chef Awards ceremony on June 13 in Chicago.