oscars of the food world

4 Houston chefs and restaurants are James Beard Award finalists

Houston has had a strong showing among the finalists for this year’s James Beard Awards. The city’s chefs and restaurants scored two nominations in nationwide categories as well as two of the five nominations for Best Chef: Texas.

Here are all of the Texas nominees in the national categories:

Emerging Chef: RJ Yoakum, Georgie (Dallas)
Best New Restaurant: Ema (Houston)
Best New Restaurant: Mabo (Dallas)
Best New Bar: Bar Colette (Dallas)
Outstanding Professional in Beverage Service: Arjav Ezekiel, Birdie’s (Austin)
Outstanding Wine and Other Beverages Program: March (Houston)
Outstanding Bakery: Starship Bagel (Dallas)
Outstanding Hospitality: Mixtli (San Antonio)

Belly of the Beast Food/Facebook

Thomas Bille is a Best Chef: Texas finalist.

The nominees for Best Chef: Texas include two nominees from Houston. Here are all of the nominees in the category:

Thomas Bille, Belly of the Beast (Spring)
Emmanuel Chavez, Tatemó (Houston)
Emil Oliva, Leche de Tigre (San Antonio)
Regino Rojas, Purépecha (Dallas)
Michael Anthony Serva, Bordo (Marfa)

The finalists are drawn from the semifinalists who were announced in January. Houston led the way with 13 total semifinalist nominations. Dallas and San Antonio restaurants earned eight semifinalist nominations each, followed by six for Austin-area establishments.

Considered the Oscars of the food world, the James Beard Foundation announced the finalists for its Restaurant and Chef Awards on Wednesday, April 2. The awards recognize excellence by chefs and other culinary professionals in a wide range of categories ranging from Outstanding Chef to Best New Restaurant. For 2025, the James Beard Foundation added three new categories to recognize the beverage side of hospitality: Best New Bar. Outstanding Professional in Beverage Service, and Outstanding Professional in Cocktail Service.

Winners must also have “demonstrated commitment to racial and gender equity, community, sustainability, and a culture where all can thrive,” according to the organization’s website. The awards also include media categories that will be announced on May 7.

Notably, all four of Houston's nominees also earned spots in the Michelin Guide. Both Ema and Belly of the Beast hold Bib Gourmand designations, while Tatemó and March are two of the six Houston-area restaurants to receive a coveted Michelin star.

While Ema, Billie, and March are all first-time finalists, Chavez has now been a finalist three times: once for Best New Restaurant and twice for Best Chef: Texas.

“These remarkable leaders exemplify our 'Good Food for Good' mission through their commitment to excellence, to the evolution of the independent restaurant industry, and our broader food culture,” James Beard Foundation CEO Clare Reichenbach said in a statement. “We look forward to celebrating everyone at the 35th anniversary of the James Beard Awards in June.”

The Foundation will reveal its Restaurant and Chef Award winners at an awards ceremony on Monday, June 16, 2024, at the Lyric Opera of Chicago.

awards chefs james beard awards

What's Eric Eating Episodes 459 and 460

Meet the men behind Houston's most under-the-radar Italian restaurant

Courtesy of Mimo

Chef Fernando Rios and sommelier Mike Sammons are this week's guests.

On this week’s episode of “What’s Eric Eating,” sommelier Mike Sammons and chef Fernando Rios join CultureMap editor Eric Sandler to discuss Mimo, their Italian restaurant in the East End. The duo, whose history goes back to when they worked together at iconic Houston fine dining restaurant Da Marco, opened Mimo in 2023.

The conversation begins with Rios explaining the progression of a career that took him from Backstreet Cafe to Da Marco to Weights + Measures, where he worked as the chef de cuisine while Sammons was a partner who oversaw the beverage program. Since they both live in the East End, they saw an opportunity to team up by claiming the former Kanomwan space on Telephone Rd.

They discuss several aspects of the restaurant’s business, including Rios’ changes to the menu, the evolution of Mimo’s wine list, and how its been received by residents of the East End. A digression about Da Marco prompts Sandler to ask about its chef-owner Marco Wiles, who generally stays out of the media spotlight. Sammons shares that Wiles is the only chef or restaurateur who makes him nervous when he dines at Mimo.

“He’s really not forgiving about things. This is very consistent with the Italian way of looking at things — there’s a right way to do things and that’s it. If it isn’t done that way, it’s wrong. A lot of my other mentors and friends can be more forgiving, but the standards Marco has kept for years has motivated me,” Sammons says.

“He’s still the same way,” Rios adds. “That was insane to me. I thought, you get older, you’d be more relaxed, but the way he looks at you makes you nervous. Working in the kitchen, there was times he’d throw all my stuff away and say ‘start over.’”

Was he right, Sandler asks.

“Absolutely, yes. He was right all the time. I just think he was one of the best to do it,” Rios affirms.

Listen to the full interview to hear both men discuss the one thing they’re most proud of about Mimo. They also discuss their plans for the future.

In this week’s other episode, Sandler and co-host Mary Clarkson discuss the news of the week. Their topics include Houston’s finalists in this year’s James Beard Awards, the owners of Jūn adding a daytime concept called Third Place, and Aaron Bludorn promoting chef Allie Pena to be Bludorn’s new executive chef.

In the restaurant of the week segment, Sandler and Clarkson visit Camaraderie, chef Shawn Gawle’s new restaurant in the Heights. They share their thoughts on the restaurant’s prix fixe menu, as well as its decor and beverage offerings.

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