Stephanie Izard Named a Food & Wine Best New Chef

The Food & Wine Best New Chefs party is taking place in New York tonight and Stephanie Izard confirmed this morning that she made the coveted list. Very early this morning, Izard tweeted, "I think the secret is out... off to early morning photo shoot for f&w best new chef!! woooooohooo! super excited!

We had a good idea this was happening when Izard tweeted on Sunday that she was going to New York for a few days and had some fun news to report. And the information kept coming, although none as direct as that.

Izard will join a number of other great Chicago chefs, including Mike Sheerin, Giuseppe Tentori, Koren Grieveson, Michael Carlson and Paul Virant, who have been given this honorable title since 2006.

Izard has had a great year since opening Girl & The Goat. She has received high marks from most critics, including a killer review in Saveur, its first in 16 years. The James Beard Foundation shortlisted the Goat with a nod in the Best New Restaurant category.

So, while we had a blast at the Top Chef finale party at the Goat last week, we can only imagine how off the hook tonight's party will get. If we get reports or pictures, we'll update as soon as possible.

· @stephandthegoat [Twitter]
· Saveur Launches Restaurant Reviews with Girl & The Goat [~EChi~]
· Girl & The Goat, Kahan, Segal, Duffy, More Nominated for 2011 James Beard Awards [~EChi~]
· Girl & The Goat Hosts Top Chef Finale; Bravo Stars Come Out to Play [~EChi~]