Steve McHugh Chef and owner, Cured At 40, chef Steve McHugh is no whippersnapper, and he’s totally at peace with that. After working for Dickie Brennan and Ralph Brennan and chef Chris Brown at Metro Bistro, and after more than a decade under John Besh (the Wisconsin native opened Lüke San Antonio), McHugh opened his dream eatery at the Pearl in 2013. At two, Cured still shines as one of the city’s best restaurants, and it’s by design as McHugh and wife/partner-in-crime Sylvia handle all aspects of the restaurant. From employing team members they would enjoy working with to calling the “salt guy” that supplies the building’s water softener, McHugh does it all in stride while visiting with tables and expediting dishes from the line. Though he always had an entrepreneurial spirit, McHugh gleaned a lot of his chef persona from his time with Besh. Read more. Credit: Josh Huskin

The James Beard Foundation Wednesday named Steve McHugh, the San Antonio chef behind Cured, as a “Best Chef- Southwest” semifinalist for the 2019 awards.

Though Texas chefs, producers and restaurants were nominated for a record 27 awards in 2019, McHugh was the only nomination from San Antonio. This marks the chef’s fourth James Beard nomination since opening his restaurant — renown for its charcuterie and farm-to-table approach — at the Pearl in 2013.

“I am so honored for this incredible distinction to be selected in the James Beard Best Chef Southwest category for Cured,” McHugh said, in a statement to the Current. “My wife Sylvia and I respectfully look towards our dedicated staff as part of our achievement, because what we accomplish as a team is far greater than what I can achieve as an individual. It was best said by Michael Jordan, ‘It is the teamwork that wins the championship, not the individual.'”

The James Beard Restaurant and Chef Awards will announce the 2019 finalists in Houston on March 27, before presenting the awards in Chicago on May 6.

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This article appears in The Arts Issue.