A Bermudian sommelier who co-owns a US restaurant is looking on the bright side after getting cut from an internationally acclaimed hospitality award.

Taurean Philpott said he was confident his restaurant, Avize, could still cook up a Michelin Star.

Mr Philpott added he felt “humbled” by his achievements, including having The New York Times name Avize as one of the 50 best restaurants in the US.

He said: “To represent Bermuda in having my restaurant be named one of the 50 best restaurants, especially as a boy from Devil’s Hole, is a great honour.”

Avize, based in Atlanta, Georgia, was named as a semi-finalist for the James Beard Award for Outstanding Professional in Beverage Service in January.

The award, which Mr Philpott called “the food and beverage equivalent of the Grammys”, is internationally recognised.

Mr Philpott said he was visited by a panel of judges in March to see whether or not he would be named as a finalist, but ultimately did not make it. The awards ceremony was held last night in Chicago.

Despite this, Mr Philpott said he was happy to be selected and called it a strong achievement otherwise.

He added that Avize getting listed on the Michelin Guide of must-see restaurants put them on the map for a potential Michelin Star.

Mr Philpott explained that restaurants were evaluated yearly to see if they qualified for the coveted star, which is given to restaurants known for delivering consistently high quality dishes.

He added the selection process was “all anonymous”.

“We’ll have no knowledge until someone e-mails us to say ‘hey, you’ve been assessed for a Michelin Star’, but we won’t know until the day of.”

Avize specialises in food from the Alpine region, blending French and Italian cooking while using seasonal and locally sourced ingredients.

For his work at the restaurant, Mr Philpott was the only person in his category this year to be nominated from Georgia.

Alongside its 29th ranking in The New York Times, Avize also placed in the Top 20 restaurants in the US by multimedia food magazine Bon Appétit.