Philadelphia Nabs Nine James Beard Award Semifinalist Nominations in 2024

The secret treasure that is Philly’s restaurant scene got out a long, long time ago. Since then, local restaurateurs have only turned up the heat, blowing diners’ expectations out of the water and racking up accolades in the process.

The latest example: the recent announcement of the nine (!) Philadelphia-area James Beard Award semifinalists.

2024’s nominees include:

• a.kitchen+bar for Outstanding Wine and Other Beverages Program
• My Loup for Outstanding Restaurant
• Isgro Pastries for Outstanding Bakery
• Cantina La Martina’s Dionicio Jiménez for Outstanding Chef
• Bolo’s Yun Fuentes for Emerging Chef.

The following talents are competing for Best Chef: Mid-Atlantic:

• El Chingon’s Carlos Aparicio
• Royal Sushi & Izakaya’s Jesse Ito
• River Twice’s Randy Rucker
• Honeysuckle Provisions’ Cybille St.Aude-Tate and Omar Tate

The James Beard Award nominees will be announced on April 3, wth the winners selected on June 10.

The City of Brotherly Love looks to recapture the magic of last year, when Philly restaurateurs dominated the Beards. Sixty percent of 2023’s nominees for Best Chef: Mid-Atlantic were based out of Philadelphia, and Kalaya’s Chutatip ‘Nok’ Suntaranon took the crown amidst the packed field.

The other 2023 winners joining Nok were Chad and Hanna Williams of Friday Saturday Sunday for Outstanding Restaurant, Toby Maloney of Hop Sing Laundromat for his book The Bartender’s Manifesto: How to Think, Drink, and Create Cocktails Like a Pro and Ellen Yin for Outstanding Restaurateur (Fork, a.kitchen + bar, High Street).