A Dallas restaurant and two local chefs are finalists for a 2024 James Beard award.
Why it matters: The annual awards doled out by the James Beard Foundation are basically the Oscars for American cuisine.
- Half of Dallas-Fort Worth’s semifinalists made it to the next round.
The big picture: The foundation is increasingly recognizing Texas cuisine in the national restaurant categories, and the awards created a regional category in 2019 just for the state.
- This year, Dallas has two finalists in national categories: Lucia chef David Uygur for outstanding chef and Gemma for outstanding hospitality.
- Lucia was a finalist last year in the national outstanding restaurant category but didn’t win.
Zoom in: Chef Misti Norris of Petra and the Beast in Dallas was named a finalist in Texas’ Best Chef category. The other nominees in the Texas category are:
- Emmanuel Chavez, Tatemó in Houston
- Tracy Malechek-Ezekiel, Birdie’s in Austin
- Ana Liz Pulido, Ana Liz Taqueria in Mission
- Christopher Cullum, Cullum’s Attaboy in San Antonio
What’s next: The winners will be named at a June 10 gala in Chicago.
