2025 James Beard Awards: Complete Restaurant Winners List

Frasca Food & Wine is Boulder's most decorated restaurant: a Michelin-starred, 2025 James Beard Award winner built around the cuisine of Friuli-Venezia Giulia, with one of the strongest Italian wine programs in the country (910 selections, nearly 8,000 bottles). At the $$$ price tier for food and wine, it's the clear choice for a special occasion dinner in Colorado. Book 3-4 weeks out minimum.

Superbueno is worth prioritising if the night calls for a serious cocktail bar with visible demand and major awards credibility. It is a stronger choice for two-person drinks or a focused downtown stop than for large groups or quiet conversation, it makes more sense as the anchor of an East Village night than a casual backup plan.

Frenchette is a James Beard Award-winning French bistro in TriBeCa from chefs Lee Hanson and Riad Nasr, recognised by New York Magazine and Opinionated About Dining. Book three to four weeks ahead for dinner; bar seats are your best same-week option. The service is calm and confident, the food runs from classic to quietly adventurous, the wine program holds a Star Wine List White Star.

Le Rock is the clearest choice for a refined French brasserie dinner in Midtown, backed by the Frenchette team's track record, an OAD Top 305 ranking in 2025, a 2025 James Beard Award for Outstanding Restaurateur. The Art Deco dining room at Rockefeller Center handles special occasions and business dinners well. Book hard and early; this one fills fast.

Jungsik New York is worth booking for a serious celebration if progressive Korean fine dining is the point of the night, not just a luxury room. It is a $$$$ commitment with major recognition and tough reservations, so plan early and keep the group small. Cross-shop Atera for contemporary tasting-menu energy or Shion 69 Leonard Street if sushi is the priority.

Kumiko holds a 2025 James Beard Award for Outstanding Bar and an Opinionated About Dining top-150 North America ranking; a rare combination of bar-program depth and Japanese tasting-menu precision. At $$$$ for dinner Wednesday through Sunday, it is one of Chicago's strongest cases for a full evening commitment. Book three to four weeks ahead; demand has grown since the James Beard win.

Atomix is worth pursuing for diners who want a serious modern Korean tasting-menu experience in New York City and are comfortable with a high-price, high-commitment evening. The strongest case is for food-focused pairs or small groups who value structure, service depth, a clear culinary point of view over flexibility.

Le Veau d'Or is the most credential-backed French bistro revival in New York right now: two Michelin stars, a 2025 James Beard Award, a prix-fixe menu of precisely executed classics in a room that has been running since 1937. Book well in advance; the intimate Upper East Side room fills fast, the combination of awards and limited seats makes this one of the harder reservations in the city.

Mawn is the hardest table in South Philadelphia and, since the 2025 James Beard Award for Emerging Chef, arguably in the whole city. Chef Phila Lorn's Cambodian-American noodle house on S 9th St runs BYO, casual, completely oversubscribed; plan at least several weeks ahead. The cooking spans Cambodian home food to broader Southeast Asian, the experience earns the effort.

Gift Horse is Providence's most credentialed restaurant right now, with a 2025 James Beard Award for Best Chef: Northeast and a spot on Esquire's Best New Restaurants list. Chef Sky Haneul Kim applies Korean technique to New England seafood in a focused, intimate room on Westminster Street. Book 4 to 6 weeks out minimum; this is not an easy table to get.

Lom Wong is the hardest table to book in Phoenix right now, with good reason. Chef Yotaka Martin's 2025 James Beard Award for Best Chef: Southwest and an Esquire Best New Restaurants #3 ranking in 2023 put this Thai restaurant in a category of its own in the city. Book as far in advance as possible. This is the first reservation to make if you are serious about eating well in Phoenix.

Peninsula is East Nashville's most-decorated Southern American restaurant in 2025, holding a Michelin Bib Gourmand and a James Beard Award for Best Chef: Southeast under chef Jake Howell. Tables are hard to secure; book at least three weeks out. At Bib Gourmand pricing, it delivers award-level cooking without requiring a tasting-menu commitment.

Birdie's is a counter-service wine bar and restaurant in East Austin with a 2025 James Beard Award, Michelin Plate, World of Fine Wine 3-Star Accreditation; at $$ food and wine pricing. The daily-changing contemporary American menu and a 250-selection wine list make it one of the strongest value-to-credential ratios in the city. Arrive early; there are no reservations and the queue is real.

A $$ Mexican restaurant in a Spring, TX strip mall with a 2025 James Beard Award for Best Chef: Texas, back-to-back Michelin Bib Gourmand recognition. The price-to-credential gap here is rare nationally. Book early; this is a hard reservation to land, it earns every bit of the difficulty.

ITAMAE holds a Michelin star, a 2025 James Beard Award for Best Chef: South, an OAD ranking of #248 in North America; making it one of Miami's most credentialed restaurants at the $$$$ tier. Nando and Valerie Chang's Nikkei cuisine (Peruvian-Japanese) is precise and confident without the stiffness of formal tasting rooms. Book four to six weeks out; this one fills fast.

Semma is the clearest argument for South Indian cooking in New York City, holding a Michelin star and the 2025 James Beard Award for Best Chef: New York State. At $$$, it sits a tier below the city's tasting-menu circuit while delivering comparable critical recognition. Book well ahead; this is a hard reservation; and go with the staff's recommendations beyond the dosa.

Myriel is St. Paul's most decorated tasting menu restaurant, with a 2025 James Beard Award for Best Chef: Midwest and a Food & Wine Best New Chef recognition to its name. Chef Karyn Tomlinson's Scandinavian-inspired, farm-and-forage menu is the right call for a special occasion dinner in Minnesota. Book several weeks out; demand is high and seats are limited.

Jon Yao's Michelin-starred Arts District restaurant reimagines Taiwanese-American flavors through a 10- to 12-course tasting menu, backed by Ryan Bailey's 2,665-bottle wine program and Austin Hennelly's cocktail depth. Reservations release 30 days out and disappear within minutes. Worth the effort if you're prepared for a three-hour, $$$$-tier commitment with zero à la carte flexibility.

Causa is Washington D.C.'s most credentialed Peruvian tasting menu: a Michelin star (2024), a James Beard Award for Best Chef: Mid-Atlantic (2025), and 20 seats that book out weeks in advance. Chef Carlos Delgado's Nikkei tasting menu moves through Peru's coast, Andes, Amazon. At the $$$$ tier, it's worth it; if the tasting menu format suits you.

Amano is the Caldwell choice to prioritize when the meal needs credibility, not just convenience. Its 2025 James Beard Best Chef: Mountain recognition makes it the strongest award-backed dinner signal in town, but the smarter move is to plan ahead and use it for occasions rather than last-minute flexibility.

Charleston is Baltimore's most credentialed fine-dining room:, a 2025 James Beard Award for its wine program, AAA 5 Diamond status. Book 4–6 weeks out minimum; this fills fast. The right choice for a serious occasion dinner; less suited to casual or spontaneous nights out.

Oriole holds 2 Michelin stars, a 2025 James Beard Award for Best Chef: Great Lakes, AAA 5 Diamond service; making it Chicago's most consistently decorated fine-dining tasting menu. Chef Noah Sandoval's French-Japanese progressive menu is exceptional, but book six to eight weeks out minimum. This is the city's strongest special-occasion choice at the $$$$ tier if service precision matters as much as the food.