Here Is Austin, Texas's 2025 James Beard Award Winner
In January 2025, the James Beard Foundation recognized six Austin chefs and restaurants on its semifinalists list, while San Antonio earned seven nods, largely in the Best Chef: Texas category. On April 2, the foundation revealed its finalists: In the Best Chef: Texas category, Emil Oliva of San Antonio's Leche de Tigre and Michael Anthony Serva of Marfa, Texas's Bordo each received nods; the award ended up going to Thomas Bille of Belly of the Beast in Spring, Texas. Other finalists included Mixtli in San Antonio in the Outstanding Hospitality category; Atomix, a restaurant in New York City, took home that honor.
The James Beard Awards, often considered 'the Oscars of food,' are among the most prestigious awards in the food and hospitality industry. Each year, the James Beard Foundation restaurants, bars, and hospitality professionals in categories like Outstanding Restaurant, Best Chef, and Best New Chef. This year's awards added three brand-new categories: Best New Bar, Outstanding Professional in Beverage Service, and Outstanding Professional in Cocktail Service.
The first James Beard Awards ceremony was held in 1991, when chefs like Rick Bayless, Nancy Silverton, and Wolfgang Puck walked away as winners. In recent years, the foundation has 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. The awards have also shifted the Best Chef category to a regional model to better recognize the diversity and depth of talent.
Here are the 2025 James Beard Foundation awards winners for Austin:Outstanding Professional in Beverage Service: Arjav Ezekiel of Birdie's in Austin
Get the full list of James Beard Award winners from across the country on Eater.
Disclosure: Some Vox Media staff members are part of the voting body for the James Beard Awards. Eater is partnering with the James Beard Foundation to livestream the awards in 2025. All editorial content is produced independently of the James Beard Foundation. See More:
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