Open nominations began Tuesday for the 2010 James Beard Awards, which means the general public can submit the names of their favorite restaurants for consideration for the award. (Click on the link to do that.) The large list then goes to a nationwide panel of judges, which cuts it to about 10-15 semifinalists in each category before a final vote is taken.

Quite coincidentally, I visited the James Beard House in New York City on Monday. That picture above is a portrait that once hung in the Four Seasons restaurant in New York. The one below is Beard’s own oversized, personalized chef’s coat; and the final shot is Beard’s former housekeeper, who still visits the house regularly. (Unfortunately, I didn’t write down or voice-memo his name; however, I do need to thank Claudia Karach, director of house events and membership, who dropped everything to give me a full tour when I walked in unannounced.

And while I was there, I briefly got to watch chef Leo Bushey of the Hartford Club in Connecticut prepping for that night’s house event, a six-course dinner focused on the fall apple harvest.

There’s also some Beard news about superchef Larry Forgione, who just happens still to run a restaurant in St. Louis, but I’ll save that for another post.