The American Awarded James Beard 2018 Design Icon Award
The James Beard Foundation announced today that The American Restaurant in Kansas City, Missouri, known equally for its architectural and culinary artistry, has been awarded this year’s Design Icon Award.
2018 Design Icon honoree The American Restaurant opened on
Valentine’s Day 1974 atop Crown Center in Kansas City. Designed by Warren
Platner, it became the conceptual parent of all the over-the-top
top-of-the-building restaurants that followed, including some by Platner
himself. Platner described it as, “Bridging the contrast in scale between great
volume of space and the minute detail of food and tableware, between public
gathering and personal intimacy, the design entertains the diner and gives
distinction to the server in this emporium of elaborate meals.”
One travels to The American by elevator, arriving at the top of
the three story-high restaurant in a carefully designed but modest entry space.
As the visitor descends into the restaurant, the grand 6,500 square foot space
is dramatically revealed as the terraced landings create an enormous glass
lined theater with views to the city visible below. The lacy Gothic-inspired
bentwood rosette-topped pillars above not only lend a “dining under the trees”
feel, but, because they line the ceiling, make for an intriguing view from the
street below. Miles of wood louvers cover the sheets of glass adding to the
sense of tree-filtered light and making a very large space feel quite intimate.
While design elements have been altered in the intervening decades, the largest
gestures, including the decorative wood elements, are all intact.
"We are honored to receive the Design Icon Award from the
James Beard Foundation," says Stacey Paine, president, Crown Center
Redevelopment Corporation. “Warren Platner created a unique design, timeless in
nature and a wonderful example of great architecture inspiring those around it.
We are proud to have The American recognized.”
Built and still owned by Crown Center, the real estate
development business for Hallmark Cards, the restaurant and its design is as
much a confection as a considered confluence of space, form, light, and color.
And because it was created by Joe Baum, in collaboration with James Beard,
Barbara Kafka, and a host of other food-world luminaries, it was, and is, as
much of a dining event as a design event. The American serves up a range of
dining experiences from guest chef events to private dining, all under the
signature wood tracery canopy that defined the space in 1974 as it does today.
The Design Icon Award is chosen by the Restaurant Design Committee.
In order to qualify, a restaurant or dining space’s design must have remained
substantially unchanged for at least 20 years and must have influenced and
inspired the design of subsequent restaurants and dining spaces. Additionally,
the restaurant/dining space must still be in operation.
The James Beard Foundation Awards Gala will be held at the Lyric
Opera of Chicago on Monday,
May 7, 2018. During the event, which is open to the public, awards for
the Restaurant and Chef and Restaurant Design categories will be handed out,
along with special achievement awards Humanitarian of the Year, Lifetime
Achievement, Design Icon, Who’s Who of Food and Beverage in America, and
America’s Classics. A gala reception will immediately follow, featuring top
chefs and beverage professionals from across the country.
On Friday,
April 27, 2018, the James Beard Media Awards, an exclusive event
honoring the nation's top cookbook authors, culinary broadcast producers and
hosts, and food journalists, will take place at Pier Sixty at Chelsea Piers in
New York City.
Established in 1990, the James Beard Awards recognize culinary
professionals for excellence and achievement in their fields and furthers the
Foundation’s mission to celebrate, nurture, and honor chefs and other leaders making
America's food culture more delicious, diverse, and sustainable for everyone.
Each award category has an individual committee made up of industry
professionals who volunteer their time to oversee the policies, procedures, and
selection of judges for their respective Awards program. All JBF Award winners
receive a certificate and a medallion engraved with the James Beard Foundation
Awards insignia. There are no cash prizes.
The 2018
James Beard Foundation Awards are proudly hosted by Choose Chicago and the
Illinois Restaurant Association and presented in association with Chicago
O’Hare and Midway International Airports as well as the following partners:
Premier Sponsors: All-Clad Metalcrafters, American Airlines, HMSHost, Illinois
Office of Tourism, Lavazza, S.Pellegrino® Sparkling Natural
Mineral Water, TABASCO® Sauce, Woodford Reserve Bourbon;
Supporting Sponsors: Breville®, Corporate Essentials, Hyatt, Robert
Mondavi Winery, Skuna Bay Salmon, Taylor Precision Products, Valrhona, Windstar
Cruises; Gala Reception Sponsors: Dogfish Head Craft Brewery, Ecolab, Front of
the House®, Kendall College; with additional support from: Chefwear,
Emmi Roth, Loacker, and VerTerra Dinnerware.
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