The 2025 James Beard Restaurant and Chef Award Nominees

Today, we are announcing the 2025 Restaurant and Chef Award nominees, as well as the Impact, Lifetime Achievement, and Humanitarian of the Year Award honorees, for the James Beard Awards® presented by Capital One. Winners will be revealed at the James Beard Restaurant and Chef Awards ceremony on Monday, June 16 at the Lyric Opera of Chicago.

Celebrating its 35th anniversary this year, the James Beard Awards® is upholding its role as the nation's foremost culinary honors by evolving its awards structure. The 2025 Restaurant and Chef Awards is introducing three new categories: Best New Bar, Outstanding Professional in Beverage Service, and Outstanding Professional in Cocktail Service. As an extension of the James Beard Foundation's impact work and advocacy policy priorities, we are also proud to inaugurate the Impact Awards, which recognize individuals and/or organizations advancing standards for a more equitable, sustainable, and economically viable restaurant industry and food system. Impact Award honorees will be acknowledged at a ceremony in Chicago on Sunday, June 15, as well as on stage at the Restaurant and Chef Awards ceremony on Monday, June 16, along with the Lifetime Achievement and Humanitarian of the Year Award honorees.

Tickets for the 35th anniversary of the James Beard Restaurant and Chef Awards in Chicago can be purchased here. The Awards will be broadcast live on Eater. We encourage you to learn more about the James Beard Awards® categories, policies, and procedures here.

Check out the nominees and honorees below!

Restaurant and Chef Award Nominees

Outstanding Restaurateur

• Stuart Brioza and Nicole Krasinski, Atomic Workshop (The Anchovy Bar, State Bird Provisions, and The Progress), San Francisco, CA

• Sue Chin and Jason Chin, Good Salt Restaurant Group (Seito Sushi, Reyes Mezcaleria, The Osprey, and others), Orlando, FL

• Scott Drewno and Danny Lee, The Fried Rice Collective (Anju, Chiko, and I Egg You), Washington, D.C.

• Allison Gibson and Cara Tobin, Honey Road and Gray Jay, Burlington, VT

• Lee Hanson and Riad Nasr, Frenchette, Le Veau d'Or, and Le Rock, New York, NY

Outstanding Chef presented by Hilton

• Lisa Becklund, FarmBar, Tulsa, OK

• Gabriel Kreuther, Gabriel Kreuther, New York, NY

• Josh Niernberg, Bin 707, Grand Junction, CO

• Cassie Piuma, Sarma, Somerville, MA

• Jungsik Yim, Jungsik, New York, NY

Outstanding Restaurant presented by Acqua Panna® Natural Spring Water

• Coquine, Portland, OR

• Frasca Food and Wine, Boulder, CO

• Galit, Chicago, IL

• Nonesuch, Oklahoma City, OK

• Oberlin, Providence, RI

Emerging Chef presented by S.Pellegrino® Sparkling Natural Mineral Water

• Kaitlin Guerin, Lagniappe Bakehouse, New Orleans, LA

• Phila Lorn, Mawn, Philadelphia, PA

• Nikhil Naiker, NIMKI, Providence, RI

• Jane Sacro Chatham, Vicia, St. Louis, MO

• RJ Yoakum, Georgie, Dallas, TX

Best New Restaurant

• Alma Fonda Fina, Denver, CO

• Atoma, Seattle, WA

• Bûcheron, Minneapolis, MN

• Ema, Houston, TX

• Fet-Fisk, Pittsburgh, PA

• Mābo, Dallas, TX

• Mita, Washington, D.C.

• Ômo by Jônt, Winter Park, FL

• Penny, New York, NY

• The Union, Helena, MT

Outstanding Bakery

• Atelier Ortega, Jackson Hole, WY

• Gusto Bread, Long Beach, CA

• JinJu Patisserie, Portland, OR

• Starship Bagel, Dallas and Lewisville, TX

• Super Secret Ice Cream, Bethlehem, NH

Outstanding Pastry Chef or Baker

• Susan Bae, Moon Rabbit, Washington, D.C.

• Cat Cox, Country Bird Bakery, Tulsa, OK

• April Franqueza, The Dining Room at High Hampton, Cashiers, NC

• Crystal Kass, Valentine, Phoenix, AZ

• Carolyn Nugent and Alen Ramos, Poulette Bakeshop, Parker, CO

Outstanding Hospitality presented by American Airlines

• Archipelago, Seattle, WA

• Aria, Atlanta, GA

• Atomix, New York, NY

• Harbor House Inn, Elk, CA

• Mixtli, San Antonio, TX

Outstanding Wine and Other Beverages Program

• Bar Brava, Minneapolis, MN

• Campo at Los Poblanos, Los Ranchos de Albuquerque, NM

• Charleston, Baltimore, MD

• MARCH, Houston, TX

• Strong Water, Anaheim, CA

Outstanding Bar

• Kumiko, Chicago, IL

• Scotch Lodge, Portland, OR

• The Lovers Bar at Friday Saturday Sunday, Philadelphia, PA

• Water Witch, Salt Lake City, UT

• Wolf Tree, White River Junction, VT

Best New Bar

• Agency, Milwaukee, WI

• Bar Colette, Dallas, TX

• Identidad Cocktail Bar, San Juan, PR

• Merai, Brookline, MA

• ViceVersa, Miami, FL

Outstanding Professional in Beverage Service

• Jacob Brown, Lazy Bear, San Francisco, CA

• Jose Medina Camacho, Adiõs, Birmingham, AL

• Arjav Ezekiel, Birdie's, Austin, TX

• Cassandra Felix, Daniel, New York, NY

• Cristie Norman, Delilah, Las Vegas, NV

Outstanding Professional in Cocktail Service

• McLain Hedges and Mary Allison Wright, Yacht Club, Denver, CO

• Ignacio "Nacho" Jimenez, Superbueno, New York, NY

• Dave Newman, Pint + Jigger, Honolulu, HI

• Tobin Shea, Redbird, Los Angeles, CA

• Mike Stankovich, Longfellow, Cincinnati, OH

Best Chefs presented by Capital One (by region)

Best Chef: California

• Daniel Castillo, Heritage Barbecue, San Juan Capistrano, CA

• Richard Lee, Saison, San Francisco, CA

• Tara Monsod, ANIMAE, San Diego, CA

• Kosuke Tada, Mijoté, San Francisco, CA

• Jon Yao, Kato, Los Angeles, CA

Best Chef: Great Lakes (IL, IN, MI, OH)

• Jennifer Blakeslee and Eric Patterson, The Cooks' House, Traverse City, MI

• Thai Dang, HaiSous, Chicago, IL

• David Jackman, Wildweed, Cincinnati, OH

• Chris Jung and Erling Wu-Bower, Maxwells Trading, Chicago, IL

• Noah Sandoval, Oriole, Chicago, IL

Best Chef: Mid-Atlantic (DC, DE, MD, NJ, PA, VA)

• Henji Cheung, Queen's English, Washington, D.C.

• Carlos Delgado, Causa and Amazonia, Washington, D.C.

• Jesse Ito, Royal Sushi & Izakaya, Philadelphia, PA

• Dan Richer, Razza, Jersey City, NJ

• Amanda Shulman, Her Place Supper Club, Philadelphia, PA

Best Chef: Midwest (IA, KS, MN, MO, NE, ND, SD, WI)

• Shigeyuki Furukawa, Kado no Mise, Minneapolis, MN

• Diane Moua, Diane's Place, Minneapolis, MN

• Loryn Nalic, Balkan Treat Box, Webster Groves, MO

• Karyn Tomlinson, Myriel, St. Paul, MN

• David Utterback, Ota and Yoshitomo, Omaha, NE

Best Chef: Mountain (CO, ID, MT, UT, WY)

• Joshua Adams, Campione, Livingston, MT

• Salvador Alamilla, Amano, Caldwell, ID

• Brandon Cunningham, The Social Haus, Greenough, MT

• David Wells, The Tasting Room at Chico Hot Springs Resort & Day Spa, Pray, MT

• Penelope Wong, Yuan Wonton, Denver, CO

Best Chef: New York State

• Nasim Alikhani, Sofreh, Brooklyn, NY

• Ryan Fernandez, Southern Junction Barbecue, Buffalo, NY

• Eiji Ichimura, Sushi Ichimura, New York, NY

• Atsushi Kono, Kono, New York, NY

• Vijay Kumar, Semma, New York, NY

Best Chef: Northeast (CT, MA, ME, NH, RI, VT)

• Avery Buck, May Day, Burlington, VT

• Sky Haneul Kim, Gift Horse, Providence, RI

• Brian Lewis, The Cottage, Westport, CT

• Erin Miller, Urban Hearth, Cambridge, MA

• Derek Wagner, Nicks on Broadway, Providence, RI

Best Chef: Northwest and Pacific (AK, HI, OR, WA)

• Jay Blackinton, Houlme, Orcas Island, WA

• Joshua Dorcak, MÄS, Ashland, OR

• Ryan Roadhouse, Nodoguro, Portland, OR

• Beau Schooler, In Bocca Al Lupo, Juneau, AK

• Timothy Wastell, Antica Terra, Amity, OR

Best Chef: South (AL, AR, FL, LA, MS, PR)

• Nando Chang, Itamae AO, Miami, FL

• Matthew Cooper, Conifer, Bentonville, AR

• Kevin Garcia, La Faena AgroCocina, Guaynabo, PR

• Angel David Moreno Zayas, El Gallo Pinto, Guayama, PR

• Rafael Rios, Yeyo's El Alma de Mexico, Bentonville, AR

Best Chef: Southeast (GA, KY, NC, SC, TN, WV)

• Noam Bilitzer, MeeshMeesh Mediterranean, Louisville, KY

• Sara Bradley, freight house, Paducah, KY

• Jake Howell, Peninsula, Nashville, TN

• Silver Iocovozzi, Neng Jr.'s, Asheville, NC

• Robbie Robinson, City Limits Barbeque, West Columbia, SC

Best Chef: Southwest (AZ, NM, NV, OK)

• Olivier Bouzerand, Fait Maison, Edmond, OK

• Yotaka Martin, Lom Wong, Phoenix, AZ

• Sarah Thompson, Casa Playa, Las Vegas, NV

• Eleazar Villanueva, Restaurant de Joël Robuchon, Las Vegas, NV

• Zack Walters, Sedalia's Oyster & Seafood, Oklahoma City, OK

Best Chef: Texas

• Thomas Bille, Belly of the Beast, Spring, TX

• Emmanuel Chavez, Tatemó, Houston, TX

• Emil Oliva, Leche de Tigre, San Antonio, TX

• Regino Rojas, Purépecha, Dallas, TX

• Michael Anthony Serva, Bordo, Marfa, TX

Achievement Awards

Impact Awards

The 2025 Impact Award honorees are:

• Angie Craig, U.S. Representative (MN-2); Minority Leader, House Committee on Agriculture

• Brandon Edwin Chrostowski, CEO, EDWINS Leadership & Restaurant Institute

• Anthony Edwards Jr., CEO and Co-Founder, EatOkra

• Seanicaa Edwards Herron, Founder and Executive Director, Freedmen Heirs Foundation

• Dune Lankard, President and Founder, Native Conservancy

Humanitarian of the Year Award

The 2024 Humanitarian of the Year Award honoree is Chad Houser, founder and CEO of Café Momentum, a Dallas-based nonprofit restaurant with multiple locations nationwide dedicated to equipping justice-involved teens aged 15-19 with skills, education, and employment opportunities in the culinary industry.

Lifetime Achievement Award

The 2024 Lifetime Achievement Award honoree is esteemed author, culinary journalist, and activist Toni Tipton-Martin.