The Institute of Culinary Education Celebrates Alumni Success at the James Beard Foundation Awards

NEW YORK (June 20, 2022) – On June 13, in Chicago, the James Beard Foundation celebrated another installment of its famed awards. The awards aim to recognize the best and brightest talent in the food and beverage industry, and this year, an Institute of Culinary Education graduate, Mashama Bailey, was awarded the highest honor — Outstanding Chef in America. ICE’s mission is to help the next generation of chefs achieve their culinary goals and find their culinary voice. Chef Mashama has found her unique voice at The Grey in Savannah, Georgia. ICE is proud to share the recognition its alumni have earned throughout the organization’s history.

Chef Mashama is a 2001 graduate of ICE’s Culinary Arts program. Other honors she has received include the Foundation’s Best Chef: Southeast in 2019, as well as Restaurant of the Year by Eater in 2017 and Food & Wine’s Restaurant of the Year in 2015.

In 2022, seven ICE alumni were named as semifinalists and finalists for awards, including: Rachel Yang (Culinary, ’01) for Outstanding Chef, Mary Attea (Culinary, ’11) for Best Chef: NY State, Helen Nguyen (Culinary, ’17) for Best Chef: NY State, Ayesha Nurdjaja (Culinary, ’07) for Best Chef: NY State, Shennari Freeman (Health-Supportive Culinary Arts, ’21) for Emerging Chef and Sohui Kim (Culinary Arts & Management, ’02) for Best New Restaurant.

“The James Beard Foundation's Outstanding Chef award is the highest singular honor in America for a chef, and we are thrilled that this year an ICE alumnus was the recipient. We congratulate Chef Mashama on this award,” says ICE CEO Rick Smilow. “It’s amazing to see how our students navigate the industry and find their culinary voices, and the ICE community is extremely proud of having been a step on the path to Chef Mashama’s and all of our students’ achievements.”

Chef Mashama enrolled at ICE in 2000 and, upon completion, worked under Jeremy Marshall at Aqua Grill for her externship. Next, she spent a number of years at Chef Gabrielle Hamilton's Prune, ultimately rising to sous chef. In 2014, she and partner John O. "Johno" Morisano opened The Grey in a restored 1938 Greyhound bus terminal, serving her take on Southern coastal and farm-to-table cuisine. She is  also the author of “Black, White, and The Grey: The Story of an Unexpected Friendship and a Beloved Restaurant.” In 2019, she was the subject of an episode of Netflix’s Chef’s Table. This summer, Chef Mashama and Mr. Morisano will open The Grey Diner Bar and The Grey Market in Austin.

Over the years, ICE alumni have been nominated for and won many James Beard Foundation Awards. This year, Chef Mashama becomes the first to win the Outstanding Chef category. She joins the ranks of fellow alumni winners, including:

CHEFS & RESTAURANTS

• 2018 Best Chef: New York City: Missy Robbins (Culinary Arts, ‘95): Lilia, Brooklyn, New York
• 2009 Outstanding Pastry Chef: Gina DePalma (Pastry & Baking Arts, ’94): Babbo, New York
• 2004 Rising Star Chef of the Year: Allison Vines-Rushing (Culinary Arts, ‘00): Jack’s Luxury Oyster Bar, New York
• 2000 Outstanding Pastry Chef: Claudia Fleming (Culinary Arts, ’88) Gramercy Tavern, New York
• 1998 Outstanding Pastry Chef: Stephen Durfee (Pastry & Baking Arts, ‘91): The French Laundry, Yountville, California

FOOD MEDIA

• 2018 Video Webcast, Fixed Location and/or Instructional: Vivian Howard (Culinary Arts, ’03): Panna Cooking: Black Bean-Glazed Salmon with Ginger Cabbage
• 2018 International Cookbook: Stacy Adimando (Culinary, ’10): Nopalito: A Mexican Kitchen
• 2016 Outstanding Personality/Host: Vivian Howard (Culinary Arts, ’03): A Chef’s Life, PBS
• 2012 Video Webcast: Jamie Tiampo (Restaurant & Culinary Management, ‘06): EatTV with Jamie Tiampo, Eattv.com

This year has continued to be a year of growth for the Institute of Culinary Education. The school’s 2022 commencement had a record number of graduates and the school continues to develop across both New York City and Los Angeles campuses. Commencement speakers were Jacques Pépin (New York) and Antonia Lofaso (Los Angeles). In 2021, the school launched an online diploma program in Culinary Arts & Food Operations, which provides aspiring culinary professionals access to comprehensive training from the comfort of their own kitchens. That same year, ICE launched its first Associate of Occupational Studies degree program in Los Angeles, which offers a college-level curriculum with a restaurant and hospitality focus.

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About the Institute of Culinary Education
The Institute of Culinary Education (ICE) is one of the largest and most diverse culinary schools in the world with campuses in New York and Los Angeles. Established in 1975, ICE offers award-winning six- to 14-month career training programs in Culinary Arts, Pastry & Baking Arts, Health-Supportive Culinary Arts, Restaurant & Culinary Management and Hospitality & Hotel Management, in addition to professional development in Artisan Bread Baking, The Art of Cake Decorating and Intensive Sommelier Training — with more than 15,000 alumni, many of whom are leaders in the industry.

ICE also offers continuing education for culinary professionals, hosts 400 special events each year and is home to one of the world’s largest recreational cooking, baking and beverage programs. ICE’s 74,000- square-foot, cutting-edge campus in New York City and its 38,000-square-foot Los Angeles campus were designed for inspiration, creativity and community.

ICE continues to grow and evolve with the launch of its LA campus in 2018, the addition of the Health-Supportive Culinary Arts program in 2019, an agreement with the International Culinary Center in 2020, the introduction of sommelier training and associate degrees in 2021 and the introduction of an Online Culinary Arts & Food Operations program in 2021. Visit us at ice.edu or join us on Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, Twitter and YouTube at @iceculinary to find your culinary voice™.

CONTACT:
Stephanie Fraiman
Public Relations Director
Institute of Culinary Education
(212) 847-0703
sfraiman@ice.edu

Download the press release here.