Maui’s Simeon Wins Best New Chef for Northwest & Pacific

By Maui Now Staff

Chef Simeon learns he’s won Top Chef’s “Restaurant Wars” for his efforts (2012/2013). File photo courtesy Bravo TV.

Maui chef Sheldon Simeon has been voted “People’s Best New Chef – Northwest and Pacific” by Food and Wine.

Food and Wine claimed to tally thousands of votes for the competition in the announcement on Wednesday, April 2.

Simeon beat out 9 other chefs in his category to take the award, although the top award of best chef for 2014 overall went to Carl Thorne-Thomsen of Kansas.

On a summarized “Why he/she is amazing” description provided to all the contenders, Food and Wine said: “Because he’s meshing his Hawaiian background with local produce and Asian techniques at this no-frills Filipino gastropub [MiGrant].”

Simeon had previously been nominated for the same award by Food and Wine in 2012 and appeared as a finalist on the TV show Top Chef.