Art Institute of California - San Diego Graduate Justin Woodward Named James Beard Award Nominee

PITTSBURGH, April 20, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Chef Justin Woodward has been named a 2018 James Beard Award Nominee in the Best Chef Northwest category.

Woodward, who serves as executive chef of Castagna in Portland, Ore., is a 2005 graduate of the Associate of Science in Culinary Arts program at The Art Institute of California – San Diego, a campus of Argosy University.

Woodward joined Castagna in 2011 as executive chef. He arrived there from New York's WD-50, where he worked under Pastry Chef Alex Stupak. This experience, along with his time as a stagier at such world-class restaurants as Noma in Denmark and Mugaritz Restaurant in San Sebastian, Spain, has culminated in his current direction: cuisine that is seasonal and progressive, with a focus on surprising his guests with common and uncommon ingredients.

"Working with my father and grandmother in the kitchen and the garden when I was growing up was really inspiring. The ability to create something for someone else is what keeps me striving day after day," said Woodward.

James Beard Foundation Awards are the food industry's highest honor and one of the top chef awards in the U.S. They are given annually by the James Beard Foundation whose mission is to celebrate, nurture, and honor chefs and other leaders making America's food culture more delicious, diverse, and sustainable for everyone. Winners for the 2018 awards will be announced at the James Beard Awards Gala on Monday, May 7.

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The Art Institutes is a system of non-profit schools located throughout the United States. Programs, credential levels, technology, and scheduling options vary by school and are subject to change. Not all online programs are available to residents of all U.S. states. Some institutions in The Art Institutes system are campuses of Argosy University. Administrative office: The Art Institutes, 1500 Penn Ave., Pittsburgh, PA 15222 © 2018. The Art Institutes. All rights reserved. Our email address is materialsreview@aii.edu.

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SOURCE The Art Institutes