Food News

2 New England restaurants went home with James Beard Awards

The James Beard Awards were held Monday in Chicago.

Sullivan's Castle Island
Sullivan's Castle Island is now a James Beard award-winning restaurant. The concession shack in South Boston reopened for the season on March 1. John Tlumacki/Globe Staff

The James Beard Awards — the Oscars of the food world — recognized the best chefs, bartenders, and restaurants across the country last night in Chicago, but New England went home nearly empty-handed. 

Of the main awards given out, New England’s only winning representation came from the category it’s expected to win in: The Best Chef Northeast, which recognizes chefs in Connecticut, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, New Hampshire, Vermont, and Maine. 

Chef Sky Haneul Kim of Gift Horse in Providence, a raw bar and seafood restaurant, took home the medallion in that category. 

A spread at Gift Horse, shown here, includes smoked fish dip, Sicilian crudo, monkfish toast, scallop crudo. – Catherine Dzilenski

Sullivan’s Castle Island, a Southie institution, also won an America’s Classic Award at the prestigious event. The decades-old concession stand was one of six local, independently-owned restaurants recognized for having timeless appeal and being beloved in their communities. 

Being named a semi-finalist and finalist is also a big deal during the James Beard Awards cycle. Multiple New England restaurants, chefs, and bartenders, including Cassie Piuma of Sarma, the bar program at Merai in Brookline, and Erin Miller of Urban Hearth, received nods this year. 

Below is the full list of winners:

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Outstanding Restaurateur: 

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

Outstanding Chef presented by Hilton: 

  • Jungsik Yim, Jungsik, New York, NY

Outstanding Restaurant presented by Acqua Panna® Natural Spring Water: 

  • Frasca Food and Wine, Boulder, CO

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

  • Phila Lorn, Mawn, Philadelphia, PA

Best New Restaurant: 

  • Bûcheron, Minneapolis, MN

Outstanding Bakery: 

  • JinJu Patisserie, Portland, OR

Outstanding Pastry Chef or Baker: 

  • Cat Cox, Country Bird Bakery, Tulsa, OK

Outstanding Hospitality presented by American Airlines: 

  • Atomix, New York, NY

Outstanding Wine and Other Beverages Program: 

  • Charleston, Baltimore, MD

Outstanding Bar: 

  • Kumiko, Chicago, IL

(New) Best New Bar: 

  • Identidad Cocktail Bar, San Juan, PR

(New) Outstanding Professional in Beverage Service: 

  • Arjav Ezekiel, Birdie’s, Austin, TX

(New) Outstanding Professional in Cocktail Service: 

  • Ignacio “Nacho” Jimenez, Superbueno, New York, NY

Best Chefs presented by Capital One (by region): 

Best Chef: California

  • Jon Yao, Kato, Los Angeles, CA

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

  • Noah Sandoval, Oriole, Chicago, IL

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

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

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

  • Karyn Tomlinson, Myriel, St. Paul, MN

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

  • Salvador Alamilla, Amano, Caldwell, ID

Best Chef: New York State

  • Vijay Kumar, Semma, New York, NY

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

  • Sky Haneul Kim, Gift Horse, Providence, RI

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

  • Timothy Wastell, Antica Terra, Amity, OR

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

  • Nando Chang, Itamae AO, Miami, FL

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

  • Jake Howell, Peninsula, Nashville, TN

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

  • Yotaka Martin, Lom Wong, Phoenix, AZ

Best Chef: Texas

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

Previously announced 2025 honorees and winners were also celebrated on stage:

  • Lifetime Achievement Award: Toni Tipton-Martin 
  • Humanitarian of the Year Award: Chad Houser, Café Momentum

America’s Classics: The America’s Classics Award is given to locally and independently owned restaurants with timeless appeal and beloved in their region for food that reflects the character and cultural traditions of its community.

  • Lem’s Bar-B-Q, Chicago, IL, Current Owner: Carmen Lemons
  • The Pioneer Saloon, Ketchum, ID, Current Owners: Sheila Witmer and Duffy Witmer
  • Sullivan’s Castle Island, Boston, MA, Current Owner: Brendan Sullivan
  • Lucky Wishbone, Anchorage, AK, Current Owners: Patricia Brown-Heller, Heidi Heinrich-Lervaag, and Carolina Stacey
  • Dooky Chase, New Orleans, LA, Owners: The Chase Family
  • Gaido’s, Galveston, TX, Current Owner: Nick Gaido
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Katelyn Umholtz

Food and Restaurant Reporter

Katelyn Umholtz covers food and restaurants for Boston.com. Katelyn is also the author of The Dish, a weekly food newsletter.

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