DC restaurants, chefs named James Beard finalists; see the list

Several restaurants and chefs in Washington DC were named finalists for the coveted James Beard Awards, given annually to the top names shaping the nation’s dining scene.

Finalists were announced Tuesday, March 31, with winners to be revealed June 15 at the James Beard Restaurant and Chef Awards Ceremony in Chicago.

Here’s which DMV restaurants are in the running for awards.

James Beard Best New Restaurant

Maison Bar à Vins, a French-inspired wine bar that opened in September, is one of 10 destinations up for Best New Restaurant.

“This recognition belongs to every single person who pours themselves into this place: the chefs who obsess over every detail before a plate ever leaves the kitchen, the front of house who make every guest feel like they’re coming home, and the dishwashers, prep cooks, and managers who hold it all together behind the scenes,” the restaurant said in a social media post. “Maison isn’t a concept. It’s a feeling, and that feeling is built by people.”

Maison Bar à Vins, located in the Adams Morgan neighborhood of DC, is “more than a great wine bar,” according to a Washington Post review, which referred to the restaurant “dazzling dinner destination.”

James Beard Outstanding Pastry Chef or Baker

Susan Bae, executive pastry chef and partner of Moon Rabbit in the Penn Quarter neighborhood of DC, is up for the title of Outstanding Pastry Chef or Baker for the third straight year.

Bae was named North America’s Best Pastry Chef in a separate award last year.

“We couldn’t be more proud to have her leading our pastry program at Moon Rabbit—this recognition is so well deserved,” the restaurant said in an Instagram post. “Honored, grateful, and cheering her on every step of the way.”

Outstanding Professional in Beverage Service

Brent Kroll, owner of the Maxwell Park wine bar in DC, is one of five finalists for the Outstanding Professional in Beverage Service award.

Park, who opened the Shaw District business in 2017, was blown away by the honor.

“At a loss for words this morning, with extreme gratitude,” he said in an Instagram Story. “Nine years into doing what I love at @maxwellpark_shaw. I never expected something like this to happen.”

James Beard Best Chef: Mid-Atlantic

Tapori chef Suresh Sundas was named one of five finalists for Best Mid-Atlantic Chef after opening the H Street restaurant in 2025.

Tapori was named by Eater as one of the 15 Best New Restaurants in America, and Sundas’s honor is a testament to his tenacious work, the restaurant said.

“We are proud of him in a way that is hard to put into words. What he carries from his mother’s kitchen, what he has built here, what he is building for the next generation of cooks who come from somewhere people didn’t expect them to come from — that is the work,” Tapori said on Instagram. “The nomination is just proof that other people see it too.”

James Beard Lifetime Achievement Award

The James Beard Awards announced California chef Nancy Silverton — who opened Michelin-starred Osteria Mozza in Washington DC in 2024 — has won its coveted Lifetime Achievement Award.

A 2014 James Beard Award winner for Outstanding Chef and 1991 winner for Pastry Chef of the Year, Silverton has “mentored countless chefs, bakers, and restaurateurs” during her career spanning more than four decades, according to the James Beard Foundation.

“Of all the ways the @beardfoundation has generously honored me over the years (decades!), the lifetime achievement award means the most because I have not lived this professional life alone. So far from it,” she said on Instagram. “I cannot wait to share this moment with the hundreds of chefs, servers, managers, dishwashers, valet attendants, and everyone who’s clocked in with me for the last 45 years.” Congratulations to all of the nominees and winners. It’s an honor to continue to cook beside you.”