Today Food & Wine magazine announced that two Dallas chefs have been included in the People's Best New Chef program, which is designed to recognize up-and-coming chefs who have run their own kitchens for no more than five years. Tre Wilcox at Marquee Grill & Bar in Highland Park Village and Tim Byres of Smoke and (soon to open) Chicken Scratch in Oak Cliff are both featured in the contest.
The field is broken into 10 chefs each from 10 regions across the United States. The winner is determined by online popular vote. The winners from each region become finalists. The finalist with the most votes overall is named The People's Best New Chef and will be featured in the July 2012 issue of Food & Wine.
Other Texas chefs in the contest are all from Austin and include Andrew Curren of 24 Diner, Ned Elliott at Foreign and Domestic, Paul Qui at Uchiko.
Voting starts today, March 5, and lasts through March 11.