(BDN Main) MONSON, Maine — Marilou Ranta never considered herself or her restaurant elite like the culinary gems of Portland, Boston and New York that typically receive national recognition.

But last week, the Philippines-born chef, who owns a fine dining restaurant in the small Piscataquis County town of Monson — or “the boonies,” as she likes to call it — found herself at an opera house in Chicago, buzzing with nerves and surrounded by culinary luminaries from across America.

On the day of her restaurant’s fifth anniversary, she gave an acceptance speech for a distinguished James Beard Award for Outstanding Hospitality, saying she never dreamed of such success.