Handle’s Briar Handly is a semifinalist for a 2022 James Beard Chef Award

Chef Briar Handly of Handle has been named one of the semifinalists for the James Beard Foundation’s 2022 Restaurant and Chef Awards.

Handly joins an elite club of past nominees with Park City ties that includes James Dumas, formerly of High West Distillery & Saloon, and former Talisker on Main chef John Murcko, who is now the owner of Firewood.

“It’s just a huge honor,” Briar said. “As far as awards go, this is considered the Oscars of the food industry, and this kind of level of excellence is something that I’ve had since I began cooking back in 1998.”

The James Beard Awards are overseen by the James Beard Foundation, a culinary arts organization based in New York that is named after James Beard, a renowned food writer known as the “Dean of American Cookery,” according to a press release.

Awards are given in categories that include media, leadership, and restaurant and chef. Awards are also give for Lifetime Achievement and Humanitarian of the Year, according to the James Beard Foundation website.

The restaurant and chef nominees are submitted to judges through an open call, and all nominees are reviewed and considered for the awards, which will be announced in June, according to the website.

Among this year’s nominees, which include chefs and restaurants from Hawaii to Maine, are Utah’s own Mike Blocher, Nick Fahs and David Barboza of Table X and Logen Crew and Paul Chamberlain of the SLC Eatery for the Chef Award; Hell’s Backbone Grill & Farm for Outstanding Restaurant; Valter’s Osteria for Outstanding Hospitality, and Water Witch for Outstanding Bar Program.

“It’s a pretty good showing for Utah,” Handly said. “It shows the world that we’re on the map and that we can hold our own as any big restaurant in San Francisco and New York.”

Handly was surprised he was nominated for the Chef Award, but said it was nice to be recognized.

“We work really hard to put our best foot forward and put the best food out each and every day,” he said. “It’s nice to be noticed for that.”

Handly’s introduction into the culinary arts came after he moved to Colorado from his home state of Vermont when he was 18.

“I didn’t really know what I wanted to do with my life, but I knew I wanted to be around the mountains,” he said. “When I was in Colorado, I had the opportunity to work in restaurant kitchens alongside some talented folk, because it seemed like the chefs always needed extra help.”

Handly fell in love with the craft and developed a passion for the constant pursuit of perfection, so he returned to Vermont to further his education at the New England Culinary Institute.

“It’s a year-long program and includes two six-month internships,” he said. “I came out to Utah, where my twin brother lives, and did my internships here, where I worked for some great chefs in Park City.”

Handly’s first bonafide chef gig was at Talisker on Main, and while he was there, his wife, Mellisa Gray, and their soon-to-be restaurateur partner Meagan Nash, had an event staff and coordinating business.

“We did some catering and saved up some money,” he said. “I always wanted to work for myself, and we came upon the opportunity to open Handle eight years ago.”

The three had some specific goals for Handle.

“We really wanted it to be a fun and lively restaurant that was a casual place where locals could hang out and enjoy great meals,” he said. “We wanted to be a place where we would craft these dishes by hand and let the ingredients shine.”

The ingredients are all locally sourced, according to Handly.

“We wanted to also support local farmers, ranchers and artisan producers in the community around us,” he said. “We wanted to have a story where our food comes from.”

To do that, Handly and his crew have to update the menu every few weeks.

“We constructed a menu that changes seasonally, as things go out of season, new things come in,” he said.

The onset of COVID-19 in 2020 was one of Handly’s biggest challenges of owning and running a restaurant to date.

“When it first came on, we ended up closing our doors for dining service and went to take away (meals),” he said. “Unfortunately, food doesn’t really translate as well when you put it in a box, but we got through it with the locals’ support.”

Handly is grateful for that support.

“We’ve got such a great following with the locals,” he said. “They’ve come to trust us to break bread with them every day. That’s why we’re in the hospitality industry.”