Serving Up Success: Two Cambridge Chefs Named Semifinalists for James Beard Award

Two Cambridge chefs got a taste of success after being named semifinalists for a James Beard award — one of the most prestigious honors the culinary industry has to offer.

Conor Dennehy, co-owner and chef at Tallula, and Erin Miller, owner and chef at Urban Hearth are both nominated for the James Beard Award for best chef in the Northeast region. Established in 1990, the award recognizes those in the food industry for their culinary achievements and emphasis on sustainability and equity.

Miller, a first-time semifinalist, said it was “thrilling” to be nominated for the award.

“I think it’s finally sinking in — not only how exciting it is for everyone, but how impactful it’s going to be for our restaurant and for our team,” she said.

Miller also thanked the “extraordinary effort” of the James Beard Foundation to celebrate diversity in the culinary arts.

“That’s really meaningful to me as a woman and as a business owner — to have that clarity and have the sense that there’s a more level playing field now,” she said.

Miller worked in the nonprofit industry before realizing she wanted to do something more “active” and “creative.” She attended the French Culinary Institute in New York City before building a private event company and eventually her own restaurant — all while balancing a growing family.

“I was able to navigate what is typically a career path that is not very kind to relationships or to families,” Miller said. “But while my boys were young, I was able to be with them all during the day, cook late at night and sleep very little — and did that for a good 10 years.”

Miller said that while she “did not have the intention of starting a restaurant” at the beginning of her career, but “fate had its way” and Urban Hearth is now going into its ninth year.

Urban Hearth’s atmosphere — which Miller describes as “intimate” and “cozy” — extends to the dishes it serves. A farm-to-table restaurant, Urban Hearth showcases locally sourced, seasonal ingredients. One of its most recent menu items was a koji and caramelized carrot duck breast with juniper branches, a parsnip, and black walnut puree — made from black walnuts she and her team “foraged” themselves.

Miller, who frequently sources ingredients from Cambridge, said she hopes her cooking shows diners the abundance of agriculture in the city — and makes them more aware of their contributions to sustainable eating and living.

“It’s thrilling to be able to share that insight with people,” she said. “It changes the way that they look at the place that they live.”

Dennehy, who was also named as a finalist for the award in 2024, said he feels just as surprised and honored as the first time.

“It is a dream come true,” Dennehy said. “As a chef, I’ve always wanted to get nominated for the James Beard Award. It really is an amazing opportunity, it’s great exposure.”

Like Urban Hearth, Dennehy’s focus for Tallula is to work with local farmers to source locally and sustainably. He said he hopes that his nomination will “help restaurants move in the right direction,” away from “big agriculture” and to local sources.

Dennehy’s love of cooking started from an early age, when he started cooking with his father.

“It’s all I’ve ever wanted to do,” he said. “I love creating something tangible, when there is immediate results, and it’s really all that I’ve ever wanted to do since I was a kid.”

Now that he is a father, Dennehy said he passed along his passion for cooking to his young daughter — the namesake of his restaurant.

“I love cooking with my daughter,” Dennehy said. “She’s a good little cook.”

“I think she mostly likes it, but I think sometimes, she just wants us to do it,” he added.

– Staff writer Kevin Zhong can be reached at kevin.zhong@thecrimson.com.

– Staff writer Jaya N. Karamcheti can be reached at jaya.karamcheti@thecrimson.com.