Welcome Laura Pyles to the Revel and Joule family! Chef Pyles comes to Revel (and Joule later this summer) with experience from Dahlia Bakery, Bastille and the Book Bindery. She will continue with Revel’s monthly dessert rotation, with April’s deliciousness being:

- Chocolate layered cake, Mezcal cream, tamarind caramel

- Coconut panna cotta terrine, grapefruit gelee, clove meringue kiss

- Spicy roasted pineapple trifle, pound cake, pink peppercorn mascarpone

On the savory side, Revel is announcing a new pancake – just in time for spring:

Asparagus and feta pancake with tarragon, Kalamata olives, and almond.

Enjoy!

Several Gruman & Nicoll clients were included in Seattle magazine’s April “Best Restaurants” issue, including Spinasse and Revel who were among The 7 Restaurants that Define Seattle Dining Now according to food writers Allison Austin Scheff and Sara Dickerman.

Revel’s Oxtail ragout noodle bowl with Swiss chard even graced the cover!

Artusi made the Happy Places cut, shouting out all the Best Restaurant Happy Hours and bartenders Adam Fortuna and Jonathan Hudak were included in the piece entitled Happiest Happy-Hours Bartenders.

Readers named RN74 the Best new restaurant that opened in 2011; Cafe Juanita was named Best Eastside restaurant and it was a tie between Spinasse and Cantinetta for Best Italian food.

Parfait was named the Best Sweet/Dessert Food Truck and Rachel Yang and Seif Chirchi and Jason Stratton were included among The Food Establishment: The 70 Power Players in the Seattle Food World.

Congrats all around!

It is an honor all chefs aspire to achieve: a prestigious James Beard Foundation Award. Semifinalists were announced today for the 2012 awards, which includes a major nod for the second consecutive year to Kirkland’s Holly Smith, chef/owner of the much-lauded Cafe Juanita, in the category of “Outstanding Chef,” a nomination which includes chefs from all over the nation, notably David Chang (Momofuku, Ssam Bar), Suzanne Goin (Lucques), Paul Kahan, (Blackbird), Gary Danko, (Restaurant Gary Danko), Daniel Humm (Eleven Madison Park) and fifteen other great chefs.

In addition to this exciting nomination, Chef’s Rachel Yang and Seif Chirchi (Revel, Joule) and Jason Stratton (Spinasse, Artusi) are semifinalists in the “Best Chef: Northwest,” an honor that recognizes the chefs’ talents and reflects their outstanding contributions to the culinary scene in the region.

The finalists will be announced on March 19 in Las Vegas and the winner will be feted on May 7, 2012 in New York City.

Join Revel on Sunday, December 18th from 9 to 11 p.m. for nibbles, cake, bubbles and a toast as they celebrate their first birthday!

The festivities are open to everyone who loves Revel and at 10 p.m., they’re hosting their first Revel Dumpling Eating Contest!

14 brave contestants will compete to see how many Short Rib Dumplings they can eat in 3 minutes. Check out the guidelines on their Facebook page and sign up early on Sunday – if you dare.