However, there are some repeats this year including Lucia, La Casita Bakeshop and three in the Best Chef Texas category. Here's a breakdown.
Outstanding Chef
David Uygur, Lucia Jennifer Uygur, the other half of Lucia, has received five previous semifinalist nominations for Best Chef (2014–17, 2019). Last year, Lucia was nominated for Outstanding Chef.
Outstand Bakery
La Casita Bakeshop, Richardson Maricsa Trejo's blossoming bakery in Richardson has made the semifinals for the second year in a row.
Outstanding Hospitality
Gemma Gemma updated its menu this year, but the restaurant is still a cozy neighborhood gem. In 2022, Gemma's sister restaurant, Sachet, was a semifinalist for its Outstanding Wine Program.
Best Chef: Texas
Locals:Misti Norris, Petra & the Beast
Anastacia Quiñones-Pittman, José
Regino Rojas, Purépecha
Arnulfo Sánchez III, Vaqueros Texas Bar-B-Q
Rich Vana, The Heritage Table
This makes three semifinalist nods for chef Anastacia Quiñones-Pittman of José, and six for Regino Rojas of Purépecha; previous nominations include Best Chef (2018–20, 2022) and Best Chef Texas in (2023, 2024). Misti Norris was also nominated in 2020 and 2022, and for Rising Star in 2016.
This is the first nomination for Arnulfo Sanchez III at Vaqueros in Grapevine, which The New York Times wrote about in "The 20 Best Texas Barbecue Restaurants From the New Generation." Sanchez recently partnered with M Crowd, the parent company of Mi Cocina, for a brick-and-mortar restaurant in Allen coming this spring. For now, you can find their food truck at Hop and Sting Brewery in Grapevine.
This is also the first nomination for Rich Vana at The Heritage Table, a farm-to-table, locally sourced restaurant in Frisco.
Other Best Chef Texas nominees include:
Thomas Bille, Belly of the Beast, Spring
Tavel Bristol-Joseph, Canje, Austin
Emmanuel Chavez, Tatemó, Houston
Mark Clayton, Squable, Houston
Christopher Cullum, Cullum’s Attaboy, San Antonio
Victoria Elizondo, Cochinita and Co., Houston
Geoff Ellis, Mum Foods Smokehouse & Delicatessen, Austin
Alexandra Gates, Cochineal, Marfa
Joseph Gomez, Con Todo, Austin
Andrew Ho, Andrew Samia and Sean Wen, Curry Boys BBQ, San Antonio
Jennifer Hwa Dobbertin, Best Quality Daughter, San Antonio
Tracy Malechek-Ezekiel, Birdie's, Austin
Emiliano Marentes, Elemi, El Paso
Fermín Nuñez, Suerte, Austin
Ana Liz Pulido, Ana Liz Taqueria, Mission
See the full list of semifinalists on the James Beard website.
