Norman’s, the fine dining restaurant from Florida’s celebrity chef Norman Van Aken at the Ritz-Carlton Grande Lakes Resort, will close this summer after 16 years. The final day of service will be Sept. 1

In a statement, Alissa Perez, director of public relations for Grande Lakes, said, “Norman’s was and will remain an incredible chapter in the story of our business and we are proud of what the team has accomplished since our relationship began in 2003.”

Well, at least it wasn’t a chef from New Orleans, for a change.

The James Beard Foundation handed out its awards for culinary excellence Monday evening in a black-tie ceremony held in Chicago.

Frenchette, New York City, was named Best New Restaurant and the title for Outstanding Restaurant went to Philadelphia’s Zahav, an Israeli restaurant. Ashley Christensen of Poole’s Diner in Raleigh, North Carolina, took the Outstanding Chef award. Kelly Fields of Willa Jean in New Orleans is the 2019 Outstanding Pastry Chef.

Orlando had had a semifinalist in the pastry chef category, a national award. Rabii Saber of the Four Seasons Resort at Walt Disney World Resort was a first-time nominee in that category.

Chastity Harvey, the executive chef at The Whiskey, has found a fun way to work some of the restaurant’s namesake into a duck and chorizo slider she features.

She takes the ingredients that would go into a traditional Old Fashioned cocktail and new-fashions an aioli with them. Add some arugula, marinated tomatoes and a smear of brie and you’ve got a great slider.

Mix yourself an Old Fashioned and watch the video as Harvey explains the process, then give the recipe below a try.

Just don’t drink the aioli.

• Watch for The Steer Steakhouse to open in a couple of weeks in the former Bauern-Stube space on South Orange Avenue. As you can see in the photo above (courtesy of Alan Herrington, who also did the redo), the place is looking pretty good. Just getting all of the German kitsch out of the building, which began its life as a Pizza Hut hut, must have been a chore. The restaurant is from Herrington’s brother Jay, who also owns Fish On Fire.
• Speaking of The Steer, there’s still no word on when Bovine, the steakhouse that will occupy the former Park Plaza Gardens space, will open. But yes, the owner is sticking with that name.
• Our friends at Big Fin Seafood Kitchen are hosting a Happy Hour with street food flare, Sunday, May 19, from 5 to 8 p.m. Tickets are $45 and can be purchased here. You can also see the menu at that link. Just go back and click on it, I’m not putting another link here.