Chicago wins Munchies Award as Best Food City

The votes are in and the people have spoken. After more than five weeks of heated competition and hundreds of thousands of votes, Tablespoon.com reveals the 2015 winners of The Munchies: People's Choice Food Awards.

The 2015 Munchies served up 20 categories of Terrific Tastemakers, Best Bites and Delicious Destinations, and fan favoritesAnthony Bourdain,Bon AppetitMagazine and "Chopped" toasted the competition by taking home awards in the Best Food TV Personality, Best Food Magazine and Best Food Competition TV Show categories.

In its fourth year, The Munchies: People's Choice Food Awards was again hosted byAndrew Zimmern, chef and the 2013 winner of theJames BeardAward for Outstanding TV Personality/Host. The list of nominees was put forth by Zimmern and a panel of43 celebrity food experts. The nominees were announced in late February at the "Best of The Munchies" event during The Food Network South Beach Wine and Food Festival, then put to popular vote onTablespoon.com/themunchiesthroughout the month of March.

"It's been exciting to ignite a passionate food debate and seeing all of us support our favorite restaurants, food media, and chefs by voting," says Zimmern. "These awards are a celebration of the best food experiences across America, and we send our congratulations to all the nominees and to each of the winners."

The people choseChicagoas Best Food City. Additionally,Chicago'sGibsons Steakhousereceived The Munchies Award for Best Steak.

Also in the Midwest,Minneapolisboasts four winners:Pizzeria Lolafor Best Pizza,Glam Doll Donutsfor Best Donut,Surly Brewing Co. for Best Craft Brewery andMarvel Barfor Best Cocktail Bar. The Best Ice Cream award went toGraeter's,Cincinnati, Ohio.

Cities from coast to coast posted winners fromNew York'sKatz's Delicatessenfor Best Sandwich Spot to

Portland Oregon'sStumptown Coffee Roastersfor Best Coffee Shop toNew Orleans'The Company Burgerfor Best Burger.

Austin, TexasestablishmentsRamen Tatsu-yaandFranklin Barbecuetook home the top prize for Best Ramen and Best BBQ.Mas Tacos Por FavorandBiscuit Love Truck, both inNashville, Tenn., won for Best Tacos and Best Food Truck.

Other notable tastemakers includeDana Cowinfor Best New Cookbook, "Mastering My Mistakes in the Kitchen," published by Ecco; Best Chef was awarded toAshley ChristensenofRaleigh, North Carolinahot spot Poole's Diner, andSerious Eatswon for Best Food Blog or Site.

"We congratulate the winners of this year's Munchies Awards and were excited to see heated competition between both perennial favorites and up-and-coming talents," saidSusan Klobuchar, Food Content Marketing Manager and Munchies program lead for General Mills.

The Munchies winners will receive their awards in the coming weeks, but they're not the only winners: a donation was made to Feeding America on behalf of the panelists and voters who participated in selecting the Terrific Tastemakers, Best Bites and Delicious Destinations that are being honored.

The List of 2015 Munchies Winners

Best Food Competition TV Show: "Chopped," Food Network
Best Food TV Personality:Anthony Bourdain, "Parts Unknown," CNN
Best Chef:Ashley Christensen, Poole's Diner,Raleigh, NC
Best Food Blog or Site:Serious Eats
Best New Cookbook: "Mastering My Mistakes in the Kitchen,"Dana Cowin, Ecco
Best Food Magazine:Bon Appetit,Conde Nast
Best Pizza:Pizzeria Lola,Minneapolis, MN
Best Burger:The Company Burger,New Orleans, LA
Best BBQ:Franklin Barbecue,Austin, TX
Best Steak:Gibsons Steakhouse,Chicago, IL
Best Taco:Mas Tacos Por Favor,Nashville, TN
Best Ramen:Ramen Tatsu-ya,Austin, TX
Best Donut:Glam Doll Donuts,Minneapolis, MN
Best Ice Cream:Graeter's,Cincinnati, OH
Best Sandwich Spot:Katz's Delicatessen,New York, NY
Best Coffee Shop:Stumptown Coffee Roasters,Portland, OR
Best Food Truck:Biscuit Love Truck,Nashville, TN
Best Craft Brewery:Surly Brewing Co.,Minneapolis, MN
Best Cocktail Bar:Marvel Bar,Minneapolis, MN
Best Food City:Chicago, IL

The Munchies: People's Choice Food Awards celebrates the tastes and tastemakers that set the food world on fire. Awards host and TV personalityAndrew Zimmernand a panel of chow hounds select five nominees in twenty food categories and then the nominees are put to a popular vote on General Mills' Tablespoon.com. Fans are encouraged to vote once per day for their favorites throughout the month of March. Annual winners are announced in early April. Since the creation of the awards program, 80 establishments and food media have been honored, hundreds of thousands of votes have been cast, more than 90 panelists have participated in determining the nominees and thousands of dollars have been donated to Feeding America. For more information visitTablespoon.com/themunchies.

About the Author

Paul Gordon is the editor of The Peorian after spending 29 years of indentured servitude at the Peoria Journal Star. He’s an award-winning writer, raconteur and song-and-dance man. He also went to a high school whose team name is the Alices (that’s Vincennes Lincoln High School in Indiana; you can look it up).