Restaurants & Bars

Williamsburg Chef Named Best In The City At James Beard Awards

Missy Robbins, head chef and owner of Lilia in WIlliamsburg, was named best chef in the five boroughs by the James Beard Foundation.

WILLIAMSBURG, NY — The head chef and owner of the Williamsburg Italian restaurant Lilia was named the best in the city by the prestigious James Beard Foundation.

Missy Robbins, who opened the 567 Union Ave. spot in 2016, was given the best chef in the five boroughs award by the foundation at their ceremony in Chicago on Monday night, the group announced.

Robbins beat out five other chefs from around the city for the prize and was the only one based outside of Manhattan to be a finalist.

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Fellow New York City chef Gabrielle Hamilton, owner of East Village's Prune, was given the top prize of outstanding chef from around the country by the James Beard Foundation.

Robbins previously served as the executive chef of the Italian restaurant Spiaggia in Chicago for five years until 2008 then came to New York to work at A Voce Madison and A Voce Columbus, according to her biography. The Madison location earned a Michelin star in 2009 and the Columbus one in 2010.

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She left the restaurants in 2013 then took over a former garage on Union Street to open her first solo restaurant, Lilia, in 2016. The spot received rave reviews, including three-stars from The New York Times.


Image: Nicholas Rizzi/Patch

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