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The 2026 list of nominees for the James Beard Awards has been released. Congratulations to our Maine nominees:
- Thomas Takashi Cooke from Izakaya Minato in the Best Chef Northeast category
- Dana Street from Fore Street, Scales, Standard Baking, and Street & Company in the Outstanding Restaurateur category.
The list of semifinalists was released back in January with seven from Maine this year. Elsewhere in New England there were 2 nominees from Rhode Island, 1 from Vermont, 3 from Connecticut and 2 from New Hampshire.
The awards ceremony will take place on June 15th in Chicago. This year is the 25th anniversary of the first Beard Award won by a Maine establishment—an America’s Classics award for Waterman’s Beach Lobster in 2001. Hopefully this year’s ceremony reveals additional award winners for Maine to continue the legacy.
For your reference:
- A list of Maine award winners, nominees and semifinalists, 2001 – 2026.
- A list of the chef and restaurant awards categories
- An overview the chef and restaurant awards process
- James Beard in Portland – Read about the time James Beard himself taught a set cooking classes in Portland.