![\"Kevin](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/SJM-L-BEARD-0621-1.jpg\")
Kevin Diedrich, of San Francisco’s Pacific Cocktail Haven, speaks onstage during the 2026 James Beard Restaurant and Chef Awards on June 15 in Chicago. He accepted the medallion for Outstanding Professional in Cocktail Service. (Photo by Daniel Boczarski\/Getty Images for the James Beard Foundation)<\/p>\n
\u201cI honestly didn\u2019t prepare anything. I\u2019m just a bartender,\u201d he remarked while accepting the award during the ceremony, which was broadcast online. Diedrich thanked the James Beard Foundation for creating a category for bartenders like him, along with a few mentors, and credited his team at Pacific Cocktail Haven for making him \u201clook good every single day.\u201d<\/p>\n
Lastly, he thanked his wife of 17 years. \u201cShe said she\u2019d never marry or date a bartender, but now she\u2019s married to an outstanding professional in cocktail service,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Tusk said he was surprised to receive his award.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe really believe in what we do. We believe in hospitality. We\u2019re always trying to create a better team, create a better work environment for the entire team,\u201d he said. \u201cThe amount of staff members is too lengthy to mention, but all of them, including all of the back of the house chefs over the years \u2013 I wouldn\u2019t be here if it wasn\u2019t for you.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe only thing I\u2019d ask is if one day I can cook with all of you, since I\u2019m sure you will all be up here one day also,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
The event featured high-profile speakers and presenters like Killer Mike and El-P of Run the Jewels, the latest \u201cTop Chef\u201d winner, Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker and Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson. Many speeches throughout the night focused on the importance of immigrants in the U.S. food and restaurant systems.<\/p>\n
\u201cChefs and their teams sit center stage on all the hot issues facing us right now, from food insecurity to pay equity to climate change to immigration and more. Our community comprises the problem solvers, the caretakers and the change makers,\u201d said Claire Reichenbach, CEO of the James Beard Foundation. \u201cTonight, we recognize the many, many roles that you have to play to succeed today.\u201d<\/p>\n
The foundation also awarded its humanitarian award to No Us Without You, a nonprofit formed in Los Angeles during the COVID-19 pandemic to provide back-of-house staff, such as dishwashers and line and prep cooks, access to pantry essentials and fresh produce. The nonprofit also helped to feed families at home to help them avoid ICE raids in nearby restaurants in the spring of 2025.<\/p>\n
\u201cFrom our loading docks to our fast food joints, from our farmlands to our dinner plates, immigrants make America great,\u201d nonprofit cofounder Dami\u00e1n Diaz said.<\/p>\n
The 2026 winners are:<\/p>\n
Emerging Chef: Adrian Torres, Maximo, West University Place, Texas
\nOutstanding Pastry Chef or Baker: Susan Bae, Moon Rabbit, Washington, D.C.
\nOutstanding Bakery: Wild Crumb, Bozeman, Mont.
\nBest New Bar: Loma, Providence, R.I.
\nOutstanding Professional in Cocktail Service: Kevin Diedrich, Pacific Cocktail Haven, San Francisco
\nOutstanding Wine and Other Beverages Program: Kato, Los Angeles
\nOutstanding Professional in a Beverage Service: Lee Campbell, Borgo, New York
\nOutstanding Bar: Scotch Lodge, Portland, Ore.
\nBest Chef, Great Lakes (Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio): Jacob Potashnick, Feld, Chicago
\nBest Chef, Southwest (Arizona, New Mexico, Nevada, Oklahoma): Sarah Thompson, Casa Playa, Las Vegas
\nBest Chef, Mountain (Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Utah, Wyoming): Penelope Wong, Yuan Wonton, Denver
\nBest Chef, Northeast (Connecticut, Massachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Vermont): Evan Hennessey, Stages, Dover, N.H.
\nBest Chef, Northwest and Pacific (Alaska, Hawaii, Oregon, Washington): Ryan Roadhouse, Nodoguro, Portland, Ore.
\nBest Chef, Midwest (Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wisconsin): Loryn Nalic, Balkan Treat Box, Webster Groves, Mo.
\nBest Chef, South (Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, Puerto Rico): Serigne Mbaye, Dakar NOLA, New Orleans
\n Best Chef, Texas: Evelyn Garcia and Henry Lu, J\u016aN, Houston
\nBest Chef, New York: Hooni Kim, Meju, Queens, New York
\nBest Chef, Mid-Atlantic (D.C., Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Virginia): Jesse Ito, Royal Sushi & Izakaya, Philadelphia
\nBest Chef, Southeast (Georgia, Kentucky, North Carolina, South Caroline, Tennessee, West Virginia): Taylor Montgomery, Montgomery Sky Farm, Leicester, N.C.
\nBest Chef, California: Dave Beran, Seline, Santa Monica, Calif.
\nBest New Restaurant: Lei, New York
\nOutstanding Hospitality: Providence, Los Angeles
\nOutstanding Restaurateur: Dana Street, Fore Street, Scales, Standard Baking Co., and others, Portland, Maine
\nOutstanding Restaurant: Kalaya, Philadelphia
\nOutstanding Chef: Michael Tusk, Quince, San Francisco<\/p>\n
Additionally, the California recipient named in this year\u2019s America\u2019s Classic category, representing timeless, independent restaurants that serve as community anchors, was The Serving Spoon in Inglewood, owned by Justin Johnson and Jessica Bane.<\/p>\n
And the recipient of the foundation\u2019s Lifetime Achievement award was Nancy Silverton, whose career spans four decades as a chef, baker, restaurateur and author, particularly in Los Angeles with restaurants like Campanile and Osteria Mozza, and the La Brea Bakery.<\/p>\n
\u201cThrough your work, you strengthen communities, you bridge cultures, and you create moments of connection that enrich all of our lives, all while serving truly delicious food,\u201d Pritzker told attendees.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Two Bay Area winners took home major honors at the prestigious James Beard Awards at a ceremony held…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":363777,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[34],"tags":[7,44359,143,145,144,420],"class_list":["post-363776","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-oakland","tag-california","tag-eat-drink","tag-oakland","tag-oakland-headlines","tag-oakland-news","tag-things-to-do"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/363776","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=363776"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/363776\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/363777"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=363776"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=363776"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=363776"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}