DALLAS — Two Dallas chefs and a Dallas restaurant are advancing to the next round of the 2024 James Beard Awards, the James Beard Foundation announced Wednesday.
The James Beard Foundation’s Restaurant and Chef Awards, established in 1990, recognizes chefs and restaurants in 22 categories, including for different regions across the country.
Semifinalists were announced in January, the finalists were announced Wednesday, and the winners will be announced June 10 at the Lyric Opera of Chicago.
“Despite so many ongoing challenges, this list is a positive reminder of the exceptional talent and dynamism of our industry—it gives me hope for the future of independent restaurants,” said Tanya Holland, chair of the James Beard Awards Committee and member of the James Beard Foundation Board of Trustees.
Dallas reportedly was last recognized with a James Beard Award when Dean Fearing won in the Best Chefs category in 1994 when he was at the Mansion on Turtle Creek.
Here are the North Texas restaurants and chefs still in the running this year:
Outstanding Chef
- David Uygur, Lucia, Dallas, Texas
Outstanding Hospitality
- Gemma, Dallas, Texas
Best Chef: Texas
- Misti Norris, Petra and the Beast, Dallas, Texas
La Casita Bakeshop, which began in Richardson and has expanded in the DFW area, was named a semifinalist in the Outstanding Bakery category in January, but was not named a finalist. Anastacia Quiñones-Pittman of José, Regino Rojas of Purépecha, Arnulfo Sánchez III of Vaqueros Texas Bar-B-Q, and Rich Vana of The Heritage Table were also semifinalists in the Best Chef: Texas category, but didn’t advance to finalists.
Other Best Chef: Texas finalists:
- Emmanuel Chavez, Tatemó, Houston, Texas
- Christopher Cullum, Cullum’s Attaboy, San Antonio, Texas
- Tracy Malechek-Ezekiel, Birdie’s, Austin, Texas
- Ana Liz Pulido, Ana Liz Taqueria, Mission, Texas
Other Texas restaurants that were named James Beard Award finalists:
Outstanding Restaurant
- Convenience West, Marfa, Texas
- Mixtli, San Antonio, Texas
Best New Restaurant
- Barbs-B-Q, Lockhart, Texas
Outstanding Bar
- Las Ramblas, Brownsville, Texas
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