This week, we honored our seventh annual class of Eater Young Guns, our look at up-and-coming food-world talent from across the U.S. Every year we ask our readers to nominate promising talent under the age of 30 or new to the business — they send in thousands. Then we consult our committee of esteemed industry veterans and local city editors. We ask ourselves whether and how this person will make an impact on our world.
I’m really pleased with where we (or, credit where due, our leaders on this project, Sonia Chopra and Katie Abbondanza) landed with the 2018 class. I believe it does a good job representing the diversity of talent out there, not just in terms of the types of people highlighted but the types of paths they’re following.
It feels appropriate that in addition to hyper-talented chefs and bakers and coffee nuts, this year we have someone who throws parties focused on social justice for farmers, food sovereignty, and empowerment. And a conservationist and butcher shop owner who wants you to eat less meat. And a 26-year-old owner of a group of hip Chinese restaurants in New York who exhibits enormous compassion and lack of ego.
Everyone in this year’s class seems to think beyond themselves when considering their careers. They’re considering how can we all work together to create spaces that are more inclusive, more diverse, more thoughtful, safer, smarter.
This group just feels very now to me, and I think it bodes well for the future of this industry.
As a bonus this year, we recruited some of our favorite writers from around the food world to tell you about why these people are so special.
Korsha Wilson writes about how Chelsea Gregoire uses her training as a preacher to inform her work behind the bar. Julia Turshen learns that Caitlin McMillan, the one-woman special-forces operative working under restaurateurs Michael Solomonov and Steve Cook, is focusing on the well-being of workers in the industry. Dayna Evans explains how Daniel Alvarez went from original Cronut fryer to debuting his own cult-classic pastry for Danny Meyer. Mari Uyehara covers a woman who overcame roadblocks aplenty to open her own distillery, Tien Nguyen profiles a star GM out of LA, Rachel Khong spends time with “the talk of Cambodia” in Oakland, and oh so much more. Please check out the full list of winners and keep an eye out for their names and projects over the months and years to come.
