S.F. Chronicle restaurant critic MacKenzie Chung Fegan wins James Beard Award
The James Beard Foundation has named San Francisco Chronicle Restaurant Critic MacKenzie Chung Fegan the winner of this year's Emerging Voice award.
The annual James Beard Awards are among the most prestigious in the food world, recognizing the best chefs, restaurateurs, cookbook authors and food journalists in the United States. The Emerging Voice award recognizes work of 'immediate impact and lasting significance' by an individual who is relatively new to food journalism.
'It's an honor to be recognized by the journalism awards subcommittee,' Fegan said. 'My first year as a restaurant critic has been the definition of a learning experience, and I'm eternally grateful for the support of my editors at the Chronicle, associate restaurant critic Cesar Hernandez and my predecessor Soleil Ho.'
This is not Fegan's first honor this year. The Society of Features Journalism recognized her in its annual Excellence-in-Features Awards with third place in Food Criticism for her review of Tadich Grill and an honorable mention for Food Writing Portfolio.
In addition to writing restaurant reviews, Fegan also authors the free Bite Curious newsletter. She and Hernandez collaborated on the return of the Top 100 restaurants list this year.
The San Francisco Chronicle (www.sfchronicle.com) is the largest newspaper in Northern California and the second largest on the West Coast. Acquired by Hearst in 2000, the San Francisco Chronicle was founded in 1865 by Charles and Michael de Young and has been awarded six Pulitzer Prizes for journalistic excellence. Follow us on X at @SFChronicle.
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The James Beard Foundation has named San Francisco Chronicle Restaurant Critic MacKenzie Chung Fegan the winner of this year's Emerging Voice award. The annual James Beard Awards are among the most prestigious in the food world, recognizing the best chefs, restaurateurs, cookbook authors and food journalists in the United States. The Emerging Voice award recognizes work of 'immediate impact and lasting significance' by an individual who is relatively new to food journalism. 'It's an honor to be recognized by the journalism awards subcommittee,' Fegan said. 'My first year as a restaurant critic has been the definition of a learning experience, and I'm eternally grateful for the support of my editors at the Chronicle, associate restaurant critic Cesar Hernandez and my predecessor Soleil Ho.' This is not Fegan's first honor this year. The Society of Features Journalism recognized her in its annual Excellence-in-Features Awards with third place in Food Criticism for her review of Tadich Grill and an honorable mention for Food Writing Portfolio. In addition to writing restaurant reviews, Fegan also authors the free Bite Curious newsletter. She and Hernandez collaborated on the return of the Top 100 restaurants list this year. The San Francisco Chronicle ( is the largest newspaper in Northern California and the second largest on the West Coast. Acquired by Hearst in 2000, the San Francisco Chronicle was founded in 1865 by Charles and Michael de Young and has been awarded six Pulitzer Prizes for journalistic excellence. Follow us on X at @SFChronicle.
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