Illustration by Lillie Allen Leading the pack is a major award for Chad Houser of Cafe Momentum The James Beard Awards, often referred to as “the Oscars of food,” are among the most prestigious awards in the food and hospitality industry. Each year, the James Beard Found ation recognizes restaurants, bars, and hospitality professionals in categories such as Outstanding Restaurant, Best Chef, and Best New Chef. Today, April 2, the 2025 James Beard Awards finalist list dropped. The list of semifinalists for the James Beard Awards from Dallas and Fort Worth, unveiled in January, were quite different from the previous two years. From the list of Best Chef: Texas honorees, only one chef carried over from 2024: Regino Rojas of Purépecha. This year, he has also landed a Best Chef: Texas nod. The 2025 James Beard Award finalists from Dallas are: Humanitarian of the Year — Chad Houser of Cafe Momentum RJ Yoakum of Georgie — Emerging Chef Mabo — Best New Restaurant Bar Colette — Best New Bar Regino Rojas of Purépecha — Best Chef: Texas Starship Bagel — Outstanding Bakery Chad Houser has been serving the community out of Cafe Momentum since it opened in 2014, and before that with pop-ups. The restaurant hires young people who have been impacted by the justice system. It plans to expand with further outreach and a new flagship location this year. It is a first time nomination for Yoakum, who came to Dallas in 2023 and quickly rose to the executive chef role at Georgie. In a conversation after the announcement, Yoakum told Eater Dallas, “[The James Beard Awards] are something I’ve looked up to since I was 11 or 12 years old... It is gratifying but the job isn’t finished. This gives light to what we do every day and makes it worth it.” He went on to commend his fellow nominees, as well as the food scene in Texas. “We put so much into what we do every day,” he says. “I’ve had the best life I’ve lived in Dallas. I never thought I’d live here after San Francisco, New York, Napa, and London.” Bar Colette has a drink program run by bar manager Ruben Rolon, who came to Dallas for its opening in 2023 after stints at L’Atelier de Joël Robuchon Miami, which has two Michelin stars, and Le Jardinier Miami, which had one. Mabo has landed on many top restaurant lists since it was opened by chef Masayuki Otaka early in 2024. Starship Bagel remains the place to get a bagel in Dallas, as long as you can take it without eggs or bacon — owner Oren Salomon doesn’t do that. The first James Beard Awards ceremony was held in 1991, with chefs like Rick Bayless, Nancy Silverton, and Wolfgang Puck walking away as winners. In recent years, the awards have been under increased scrutiny after canceling its programming in 2020 and 2021 due to misbehavior and abuse allegations against nominated chefs, and a lack of nominated and winning Black chefs among the categories. In response, the James Beard Foundation conducted an internal audit to make its voting processes more inclusive and equitable before returning in 2022. In recent years, the awards have shifted the Best Chef category to a regional model to better recognize the diversity and depth of talent. The final ceremony naming the Beard winners for 2025 will be held on Monday, June 16, in Chicago. DFW has been on a 30-year losing streak at the Beard Awards, and this will be year 31 if none of the nominees bring home a medal. Get the full list of James Beard Award Finalists from across the country on Eater. Disclosure: Some Vox Media staff members are part of the voting body for the James Beard Foundation Awards. ...read more read less