In the 2004 James Beard awards, two Seattle chefs were nominated in the category Best Chef: Northwest/Hawaii: Scott Carsberg of Lampreia and Eric Tanaka of Dahlia Lounge.
Eric Tanaka won the, uhh, Beardie. It's been a while since I've eaten at Dahlia Lounge. I guess Tom Douglas is just a figurehead. I ate once at Lampreia. Spectacular meal, but PRICEY.
Leslie Mackie of Macrina Bakery & Cafe was nominated for All-Clad Bakeware Outstanding Pastry Chef Award. Her work I haven't tried, and that must be corrected soon.
I've been trying to hit all the restaurants I haven't tried in Seattle in an effort to complete the list before I head out of town. Last Friday I dined at La Carta de Oaxaca (tasty and cheap, but very crowded and slow on weekends when no reservations are accepted; go during the week), yesterday Kate treated me to Kaspar's (thumbs up, but how do they stay in business as everyone I've spoken to who has eaten there has sat alone, and we were no exception), and tonight I'm headed to Lark (Johnathan Sundstrom's latest venture).