Birmingham chef Frank Stitt has won James Beard Awards for the best chef in the Southeast and for the most outstanding restaurant in America, as well as a lifetime achievement award from the Southern Foodways Alliance.

But this Thursday night, the 69-year-old Stitt will receive an award that may be even nearer and dearer to his heart — the Frank Stitt Award for Industry Excellence — at Birmingham’s inaugural FOOD + Culture Festival, a four-day event that celebrates the food and restaurant scene that Stitt has helped elevate since he opened Highlands Bar and Grill more than four decades ago.

Stitt will be the first honoree of the eponymous award, but in future years, it will go other chefs, farmers, servers and mixologists who have made a positive impact on their community and on the culinary industry.

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Along with the award presentation, several of Stitt’s chef proteges will share their memories of working for him at FOOD + Frank: A Lifetime at The Table, which takes place from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Thursday at the Birmingham Museum of Art.

The FOOD + Culture Festival continues through Sunday, Oct. 15. For tickets and more information, go here.

Meanwhile, join us in honoring Stitt’s culinary career by taking our Frank Stitt trivia quiz and finding out just how well you know him.