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Two Delaware chefs earn James Beard nominations

Jacob Owens February 23, 2022

Delaware’s restaurant scene continued its run of accolades in recent years as The House of William & Merry chef Bill Hoffman earned his first James Beard nomination and Antimo DiMeo, […]

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🔒 🔒 Artisan sea salt business explores wholesale market

Katie Tabeling June 23, 2021

LEWES — An independent sea salt maker is now exploring wholesale accounts with restaurants and retail locations on a limited basis, as the startup company looks to grow revenue and […]

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Features, Hospitality & Entertainment, News, Retailing And Restaurants, Small Business

Sussex businesses look at uncharted waters this summer

Katie Tabeling June 2, 2020

When your entire business model is based on hospitality, how can you offer that with social distancing requirements? That’s one of many questions that Matthew Kern, executive chef at Heirloom […]

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Hospitality & Entertainment, News

Heirloom chef Matthew Kern gets state’s sole James Beard nod

Peter Osborne February 26, 2020

LEWES – Matthew Kern of the highly-regarded Heirloom restaurant is Delaware’s only semifinalist for the prestigious James Beard Awards, earning his second-straight nomination as one of the 20 best chefs […]

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News, Retailing And Restaurants

James Beard finalist list does not include Bardea, Heirloom Chef Matthew Kern

Peter Osborne March 27, 2019

Bardea Food & Drink, the new Italian eatery in downtown Wilmington, and Matthew Kern, chef of Lewes’ highly rated Heirloom restaurant were not selected today as finalists for James Beard […]

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Features, Hospitality & Entertainment

Woman’s place is in the restaurant business

Kathy Canavan May 26, 2016

By Kathy Canavan Meghan Lee, who debuted Heirloom in a cedar-shake mansion adjacent to Lewes’ Zwaanendael Museum in December, said she knew “the female card” would play a role in […]

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Delaware’s restaurant scene continued its run of accolades in recent years as The House of William & Merry chef Bill Hoffman earned his first James Beard nomination and Antimo DiMeo, of Bardea, earned his second overall and first as a chef. The semifinalist nominations, announced Wednesday by the James Beard Foundation, are one of the highest honors for American chefs. It marks the return of the awards program after it was canceled last year amid the fallout of the pandemic and its impact on the industry. The overall winners of the awards, considered the Oscars of the food industry, will be announced in June with finalists named March 16. Sam Calagione, founder of Dogfish Head Brewery, won Delaware’s last James Beard Award in 2017 for outstanding wine, beer, or spirits professional, while the late Matt Haley of SoDel Concepts won the organization’s humanitarian award. [caption id="attachment_220650" align="alignright" width="300"]

The House of William & Merry chef Bill Hoffman, right, earned a James Beard nomination. He credits the support of his wife, Merry Catanuto. | PHOTO COURTESY OF HOUSE OF WILLIAM & MERRY[/caption] On Wednesday, it was Hoffman and DiMeo’s turn to bask in a bit of industry acclaim. The First State doesn’t win a lot of the industry awards, but heralds the highly sought-after nominations, typically scoring one or two a year. Hoffman, who opened The House of William & Merry off Old Lancaster Pike in Hockessin with his wife, Merry, in 2011, told Delaware Business Times that he was baking some bread Wednesday morning when he got a call from the staff of Heirloom, a Lewes restaurant that earned nominations for then-chef Matt Kern in 2019 and 2020. “I was kind of in disbelief … and then I started getting a bunch of people calling me,” he said. “You start thinking about all the moments and all the stuff that led up to this moment, and it’s just a bit overwhelming.” Calling Merry his “momma bear” that keeps the operation going, Hoffman credited the support of his wife, his staff and his community for the recognition. “You can see all the restaurants and chefs that get [nominations] and they’re in big cities, and you just begin to wonder if they’ll ever find little Hockessin. Over the past few years, we've just really focused on taking care of our community,” he said. “We wouldn't be here without this town and this award is pretty cool for the whole town.” DiMeo, executive chef at Bardea in Wilmington’s Market Street corridor, is no stranger to the Beard awards, having guided the 4-year-old contemporary Italian restaurant to a 2019 best new Mid-Atlantic restaurant nomination. The 29-year-old only expected to be eligible for best emerging chef, for those young rising stars. As he and Bardea partner Scott Stein scrolled through the nominations Wednesday, they were initially deflated to not see him listed there but overjoyed to find him among the established chefs. “Scott literally tackled me into the bar, yelling and congratulating me,” he told DBT. “Since the day I started cooking, my dream was to get nominated for the rising star category before I was 30. So, to skip right over that to get nominated as a best chef mid-Atlantic just leaves me speechless. I'm just incredibly grateful and humbled.” Stein, who said he and DiMeo set a goal of “Beard or Bust” when they began their partnership nearly a decade ago, said the recognition is even sweeter in its timing, as restaurants continue to face hiring difficulties, inflation and pandemic restrictions. “It's been such a challenging two years and when you get something like this, it gives you a reason to keep fighting the fight,” he said. Stein and DiMeo would be the first to say that their Beard nomination a few years ago helped to validate their reputation and packed their 120 seats in the years afterward – it continues to be one of the hottest restaurants in Wilmington. They hope that excitement also carries over to their new concept, Bardea Steak, which will open on Market Street in a few months. Hoffman also expects the honor will help new patrons find his 60-seat restaurant a bit off the beaten path from the Interstate 95 corridor. On Wednesday though, he was busy getting his curated menu ready for the night’s customers. “We’ll have a little champagne before the shift and then we’ll be ready to go,” he said.