Oklahoma
8 Oklahoma restaurants, chefs named semifinalists on James Beard Foundation’s 2026 list
‘Super flu,’ OKC Archbishop Coakley’s visit with Trump, other OK news
Got a minute? Catch up on the top news of the week for Jan. 16, 2026.
Awards season has arrived.
For most people, that probably means looking out for nominations for Golden Globes, Grammys and Oscars, but in the world of food and dining, it begins with the drop of the long list of the James Beard Foundation Awards Semifinalists.
The list highlights the best across the country in categories ranging from hospitality to outstanding chef and beyond.
As in years past, Oklahoma continues to show up with strong numbers on the foundation’s long list, marking continued growth in the state’s culinary scene.
This year, Oklahoma has eight semifinalists — seven from Oklahoma City and one from Tulsa — spread across four categories.
These are the 2026 James Beard Foundation Awards Semifinalists for Oklahoma.
Best Chef: Southwest
Jeff Chanchaleune returns to the James Beard Foundation Awards long list for 2026 this time for Bar Sen, 1630 N Blackwelder Ave. Having previously been named a semifinalist for both Gun Izakaya and Ma Der and a two-time finalist for Ma Der, Chanchaleune is no stranger to the Beard Awards list.
“I’m relieved that we made the long list, but it’s not over yet. We still have two more rounds. We still have to make top five. We have to make it to Chicago, and hopefully we can bring it back finally,” Chanchaleune said. “Staff meeting’s like ‘We made it, but it’s not over. If you guys want this, we all got to work together.’”
Brian Momanyi and Stayce Momanyi of Plus254, 119 N Robinson Ave., began their journey with a food truck and now serve up authentic Kenyan dishes from the food court at the Robinson Renaissance building. Their samosas were recently named a people’s choice winner at the Girl Scouts of Western Oklahoma’s annual Cookies and Cocktails fundraiser and also won an award for best samosas in OKC’s Vegan Chef challenge in 2024.
Zack Walters of Sedalia’s, 2727 NW 10th St., finds himself named a semifinalist for the second year in a row.
“I am very thrilled to be nominated and representing Oklahoma and its continued push in the national conversation when it comes to food, hospitality & the legacy of our community. It is a very trying time to think of awards and awards season in our profession but we are so immensely grateful nonetheless – this award nomination feels more for my team than it does for me,” Walters said. “The hard work, dedication and commitment they put into their day. We are very honored to be recognized. I’m incredibly happy to share this semifinalist nomination with all my colleagues representing Oklahoma, I’m very lucky to know many of them and know the dedication they put into their craft and into building our community.”
Veronica Zelada of Café Kacao, 3325 N. Classen Blvd., has spent nearly 15 years crafting Latin-American dishes in Oklahoma City’s Asian District. Zelada’s restaurant is regularly regarded as one of the best brunch spots in Oklahoma City and people gladly wait in line to dine on the menu options that take their influences from Zelada’s native Guatemala, as well as countries like El Salvador, Brazil, and Southern Mexico.
Outstanding Restaurant presented by Acqua Panna Natural Spring Water
Nonesuch, 803 N. Hudson Ave., returns for the second consecutive year as a semifinalist in the Outstanding Restaurant category and is joined by FarmBar, 1740 S. Boston Ave. in Tulsa.
Both restaurants offer standout multi-course tasting menus crafted by chefs utilizing sustainably and thoughtfully sourced ingredients.
FarmBar’s head chef, Lisa Becklund, was a nominee in 2025 for Outstanding Chef and has been a two-time semifinalist for Best Chef: Southwest.
Best New Bar
Later Bye, 301 NW 13th St., earned a semifinalist mention in the Best New Bar category, one of the more recently added categories for the awards. The intimate spot is helmed by the team of Steven Idlet and Bailey and Brian Butler. The Butlers are also behind another popular OKC destination, Palo Santo.
“We are honored to be semifinalists for the James Beard Foundation’s Best New Bar! The recognition is a testament to our hard-working and talented staff,” Idlet said in a statement on behalf of the team. “It’s an amazing feeling to be mentioned alongside such talented peers across the country. We are incredibly grateful to the support OKC has given us over our first year and look forward to many more!”
Outstanding Restaurateur
Rachel Cope, who’s 84 Hospitality is the overhead of popular restaurants like Elisabetta, Gorō Ramen, Empire Slice and Burger Punk, has been making moves in the Oklahoma restaurant scene for more than a decade, inspired by friends from cities around the country, but dedicated to her love for her home state.
“I never even dreamt that that was possible. I’ve always just watched our friends and other restaurant people from Oklahoma and cheered them on, but it was definitely a really cool surprise,” Cope said.
Cope said the timing of the announcement is perfect as she prepares to launch into 2026 with her team, and gives them something to celebrate together, but that it’s also fun to have something to look forward to as she and other semifinalists await finalist nomination announcements in March.
“That would be really cool for the city, I think that would be awesome. It’d be cool for Oklahoma,” she said. “It’s always great when anyone from the state is recognized and kind of continues to shine a light on what everybody’s working really hard to do here in little Oklahoma. It’s a pretty cool place to be.”