The James Beard Foundation (JBF) and The New School are acknowledging the increasingly integral alliance between aesthetics and cuisine with a series of panel discussions, titled Dining + Design: Conversations with Chefs and Architects on Creating the Ideal Dining Experience, which will debut later this month.
The program will feature conversations with top chefs and architects, highlighting the critical relationship between a restaurant’s culinary concepts and physical design. Whether high concept or vernacular, high budget or low, design plays an essential role in every restaurant experience.
“The Dining + Design series perfectly aligns with the mission of the Food Studies program here at The New School, which is to provide students with the theoretical and practical tools they need to successfully engage in the growing global conversations about cuisine,” said Fabio Parasecoli, associate professor and coordinator, food studies. “We are thrilled to have the opportunity to partner with The James Beard Foundation, and look forward to cultivating a longstanding relationship.”
In addition to the launch of Dining + Design with The New School, JBF has made a change to the James Beard Awards’ Restaurant Design category. This year, the Foundation will name two winners of the Restaurant Design Award one for restaurants with 75 seats or under, and one for those with 76 or more seats.
“Winners of the Beard Foundation’s Restaurant Design Award are consistent in their mission to fully integrate design and cuisine, and these two new awards allow us to recognize a broader range of talent who truly succeed in that aspect,” said Brooke Hodge, director of exhibitions and publications at Los Angeles’s Hammer Museum and chair of the James Beard Foundation’s Restaurant Design Committee. “To further underscore the importance of this relationship, the Dining + Design series will bring key chefs and architects together to personally shed light on the collaborative creative process that goes into producing an exceptional dining experience.”
Dining + Design draws on The New School’s Food Studies program, which is a leader in the study of the intersection of food and design, culture and politics. The series will kick off with its first panel discussion on April 22 and rotate between various New School auditoriums in New York City:
Monday, April 22—6:00 p.m.
Dining: Chef Dan Barber & Laureen Barber,Blue Hill at Stone Barns
Design: Peter Guzy, Asfour Guzy Architects
Moderated by Mitchell Davis, Executive Vice President, James Beard Foundation
The New School’s Wollman Hall, 65 W. 11th Street, 5th Floor
Monday, May 20—6:00 p.m.
Dining: Chef Andrew Carmellini, The Dutch, Lafayette and Locanda Verde
Design: Robin Standefer and Stephen Alesch, Roman + Williams
Moderated by Fabio Parasecoli, Assoc. Prof. & Coordinator, Food Studies, The New School
The New School’s Wollman Hall, 65 W. 11th Street, 5th Floor
Monday, June 10—6:00 p.m.
Dining: Chef David Chang, Momofuku
Design: Anwar Mekhayech, The Design Agency
Moderated by Mitchell Davis, Executive Vice President, James Beard Foundation
The New School’s Theresa Lang Center, 55 W. 13th Street, 2nd Floor
Tickets to Dining + Design are available to the general public for $10, with free admission for students and alumni of The New School and members of the James Beard Foundation. To purchase tickets, call The New School box office at 212.229.5488, email, or visit The New School box office online. For more information about becoming a member of the James Beard Foundation, please visit the website.
The program will feature conversations with top chefs and architects, highlighting the critical relationship between a restaurant’s culinary concepts and physical design. Whether high concept or vernacular, high budget or low, design plays an essential role in every restaurant experience.
“The Dining + Design series perfectly aligns with the mission of the Food Studies program here at The New School, which is to provide students with the theoretical and practical tools they need to successfully engage in the growing global conversations about cuisine,” said Fabio Parasecoli, associate professor and coordinator, food studies. “We are thrilled to have the opportunity to partner with The James Beard Foundation, and look forward to cultivating a longstanding relationship.”
In addition to the launch of Dining + Design with The New School, JBF has made a change to the James Beard Awards’ Restaurant Design category. This year, the Foundation will name two winners of the Restaurant Design Award one for restaurants with 75 seats or under, and one for those with 76 or more seats.
“Winners of the Beard Foundation’s Restaurant Design Award are consistent in their mission to fully integrate design and cuisine, and these two new awards allow us to recognize a broader range of talent who truly succeed in that aspect,” said Brooke Hodge, director of exhibitions and publications at Los Angeles’s Hammer Museum and chair of the James Beard Foundation’s Restaurant Design Committee. “To further underscore the importance of this relationship, the Dining + Design series will bring key chefs and architects together to personally shed light on the collaborative creative process that goes into producing an exceptional dining experience.”
Dining + Design draws on The New School’s Food Studies program, which is a leader in the study of the intersection of food and design, culture and politics. The series will kick off with its first panel discussion on April 22 and rotate between various New School auditoriums in New York City:
Monday, April 22—6:00 p.m.
Dining: Chef Dan Barber & Laureen Barber,Blue Hill at Stone Barns
Design: Peter Guzy, Asfour Guzy Architects
Moderated by Mitchell Davis, Executive Vice President, James Beard Foundation
The New School’s Wollman Hall, 65 W. 11th Street, 5th Floor
Monday, May 20—6:00 p.m.
Dining: Chef Andrew Carmellini, The Dutch, Lafayette and Locanda Verde
Design: Robin Standefer and Stephen Alesch, Roman + Williams
Moderated by Fabio Parasecoli, Assoc. Prof. & Coordinator, Food Studies, The New School
The New School’s Wollman Hall, 65 W. 11th Street, 5th Floor
Monday, June 10—6:00 p.m.
Dining: Chef David Chang, Momofuku
Design: Anwar Mekhayech, The Design Agency
Moderated by Mitchell Davis, Executive Vice President, James Beard Foundation
The New School’s Theresa Lang Center, 55 W. 13th Street, 2nd Floor
Tickets to Dining + Design are available to the general public for $10, with free admission for students and alumni of The New School and members of the James Beard Foundation. To purchase tickets, call The New School box office at 212.229.5488, email, or visit The New School box office online. For more information about becoming a member of the James Beard Foundation, please visit the website.