Today, on what would have been the 30th annual James Beard Awards ceremony, the James Beard Foundation announced the finalists for the 2020 James Beard Awards, which honors the year’s outstanding restaurants and chefs, as well as food journalism, books, and broadcast media. The announcement was originally scheduled for March 25, but the coronavirus pandemic forced the Foundation to cancel the planned Philadelphia event and postpone both the finalists reveal and the awards themselves.

COVID-19 has left the restaurant industry