CHICAGO — Of the five total nominees, Atsuko Fujimoto, owner of Norimoto Bakery in Portland, ME, was announced the winner of the Outstanding Pastry Chef or Baker category at the James Beard Restaurant and Chef Awards, held June 10 in Chicago.
To start her acceptance speech, Atsuko thanked and recognized her staff.
“This is a small team,” Atsuko said. “Just six employees in Portland, Maine. This is a golden team. Thank you so much, and congratulations to you guys, too.”
She went on to thank her family for their support before closing out her speech by recognizing the kitchen staff she’s worked with throughout Portland.
“I want to thank everyone that I worked with and worked for in the past 20 years in Portland,” she concluded. “I came to Portland from Tokyo 23 years ago, and I was already 30 years old. I had no kitchen experience, and yet here I am, and I was just able to continue working in a kitchen, even though I had no experience at all. I just enjoyed it so much. I enjoyed working with them each day. So, I want to thank them all. All the food people in Portland, Maine — thank you for making me a baker.”
The Maine bakery is best known for its authentic ingredients, European baking and Japanese-inspired sensibility within its various weekly artisanal offerings.
Norimoto Bakery wasn’t the only Portland-based bakery to receive a James Beard Award this year. ZU Bakery won the Outstanding Bakery award shortly after Atsuko accepted hers, solidifying the city’s influential bakery presence on the food map.
