Hawaii chefs need votes for Food & Wine honor

Food & Wine magazine is inviting the public to help discover The People’s Best New Chef. The award, an extension of the Food & Wine Best New Chefs award, honors talented up-and-coming innovators who have run their own kitchens for five years or fewer.

The field of 100 nominees for the award includes 10 chefs in 10 regions across America. Restaurant devotees can cast their votes on foodandwine.com/the-peoples-bnc through 11 a.m. March 31.

Nominees from the Northwest/Pacific region include Hawaii’s Chris Kajioka (The Vintage Cave, Ala Moana Center), Kevin Lee (Prima, Kailua), and Sheldon Simeon (Migrant, Kihei).

The chef with the most votes in each region will be named a finalist; the finalist with the most votes overall will be named The People’s Best New Chef, to be revealed online on April 2. The winner will also be featured in the July 2014 issue of Food & Wine, the same issue that profiles the Best New Chefs. (Nominees for The People’s Best New Chef award are also eligible for the Best New Chef award.)

To learn more about the 100 nominated chefs, visit foodandwine.com/the-peoples-bnc.

Meet the chefs: