Today, the James Beard Foundation announced the restaurant and chef finalists for the 2026 awards, with many New York City spots and people making it to the final round, whittled down from the longlist of semifinalists shared in January.
In February, the James Beard Foundation announced the winners of its America’s Classics awards, given to longtime restaurants across the country, which included Kingston Chinese American restaurant Eng’s.
During the 2025 awards, chef Vijay Kumar of South Indian restaurant Semma won the Best Chef: New York State award; Ignacio “Nacho” Jimenez of Mexican cocktail bar Superbueno received the Outstanding Professional in Cocktail Service Award category; Korean tasting menu restaurant Atomix got the Outstanding Hospitality award; Lee Hanson and Riad Nasr snagged the Outstanding Restaurateur Award for their work behind Frenchette, Le Veau d’Or, and Le Rock; and Jungsik Yim of Korean fine-dining restaurant Jungsik ended the evening with his Outstanding Chef win.
The 2026 James Beard Award winners will be announced at the ceremony in Chicago on Monday, June 15.
Read on for the James Beard Awards 2026 finalists for New York.
Best Chef: New York State
Outstanding Wine and Other Beverages Program
Outstanding Professional in Beverage Service
Outstanding Professional in Cocktail Service
Disclosure: Some Vox Media staff members are part of the voting body for the James Beard Foundation Awards.