With six finalists across different categories, Houston is shining once again on the regional and national levels on the list of finalists for the 2026 James Beard Awards, considered among the nation's most prestigious honors, recognizing exceptional talent in the culinary and food industries. The winners will be celebrated at the James Beard Restaurant and Chef Awards ceremony on Monday, June 15, 2026, at the Lyric Opera of Chicago. On a personal level, the James Beard Awards continue to impact the careers and lives of many culinary professionals. Recognition at any stage of the Awards process can lead to significant visibility and, in some cases, short and long-term positive economic impact for businesses.
Houston finalists are:
Outstanding Restaurateur
Hugo Ortega and Tracy Vaught, H Town Restaurant Group
H Town Restaurant Group, owned by Tracy Vaught and Hugo Ortega, operates six beloved restaurants in Houston: Backstreet Café, Hugo’s, Caracol, Xochi, URBE, and Zaranda (opened in 2025). Chef Hugo Ortega is a winner of Best Chef: Southwest at the 2017 James Beard Foundation Awards (the first Mexican-born chef to win a James Beard Award). Ortega has been recognized locally, nationally, and globally for his inspirational story and his passion for sharing traditional Mexican cooking and culture.
Named Outstanding Restaurateur of the Year by the Texas Restaurant Association and inducted into the Texas Restaurant Association’s Restaurant Hall of Honor in August 2020, Tracy Vaught is a four-time semi-finalist for Outstanding Restaurateur for the James Beard Foundation Awards. She's among Houston's most respected hospitality figures.
With their unique blend of creativity, community, and business acumen, Hugo and Tracy tirelessly delight Houstonians and visitors with distinct flavors and vibes at each of their restaurants and build solid businesses that benefit the local economy.
Best Chef: Texas
Born in London and raised in Houston, Ope Amosu always had business on the brain. In 2021, Amosu officially left his corporate job and opened ChòpnBlọk in the POST Market food hall. Since then, ChòpnBlọk has partnered with the Houston Rockets to provide concessions for their arena and has opened its flagship brick-and-mortar location in the Montrose area. ChòpnBlọk is a fast-casual restaurant concept that invites diners to explore the vibrant flavors of West Africa. The restaurant serves fresh, high-quality proteins, vegetables, and grains, all prepared with authentic West African spices and presented in a contemporary style. ChòpnBlọk aims to offer a unique, convenient, and flavorful dining experience that allows local communities to engage with West Africa's rich culinary traditions. The ChòpnBlọk menu draws inspiration from traditional West African recipes passed down by cherished home cooks, esteemed chefs, and family traditions. The Culinary Creatives at ChòpnBlọk reimagine these dishes, blending time-honored techniques with modern culinary methods to deliver an unforgettable dining experience.
Chef Evelyn Garcia, a Houston native with Salvadoran and Mexican heritage, and Henry Lu, a Bronx-born Chinese-American chef, met while both were working in New York. Garcia eventually relocated to Houston, and in 2021, Lu followed suit to join forces with her and help expand her pop-up and product line, By Kin. Together, they went on to build their Houston Heights restaurant, JŪN, from the ground up. The restaurant, which opened in early 2023, focuses on New Asian American cuisine. Artfully crafted and posed to perfection, the dishes at this charming Heights establishment are sure to give visitors a true dining experience. JŪN is a celebration of Houston from its flavors, its spirit, and its ever-changing landscape. Chef Evelyn Garcia and Chef Henry Lu are inspired by the traditions that have shaped this city and state, which is made up of the diverse cultures, ingredients, and stories that make Texas so multidimensional. At JŪN, Chef Evelyn & Chef Henry pay homage to where Texas has been while exploring where its food can go. JŪN cooks with pride, curiosity, and a deep respect for the land and the people who define it.
Emerging Chef
Adrian Torres, Maximo
Adrian Torres is Executive Chef at Maximo, nestled in the heart of Houston’s West University neighborhood at 6119 Edloe Street. This modern Mexican restaurant combines authenticity and adventure highlighting Mexican ingredients rarely seen on Houston menus throughout, bringing more nixtamalized masa creations and introducing shareable small plates and composed entrees. Maximo opened in spring 2024 as a neighborhood-focused, fast-casual restaurant that primarily served tacos and burgers, and in January 2025, considerably revamped its menu, transforming Maximo into a more destination-worthy modern Mexican restaurant. Chef Torres is most proud of the new menu items showcasing a wide variety of heirloom masa applications, including an innovative masa-encrusted fish entree and a shareable masa cornbread with chicatana butter, mole soubise, hoja santa oil, and caviar; and a masa concha. Other standouts include a hamachi crudo adorned with bright pink prickly pear ponzu, goldenberry and chile de arbol, a shrimp chorizo and shishito rajas quesadilla on a sourdough tortilla, and a banana ice cream-topped banana pudding buñuelo. Meanwhile, fan favorites like the tacos with fried fish and slow-cooked suadero remain on the menu in a more petite size to allow diners the room to explore. View our blog post for more details.
Best New Restaurant
Chef Nick Wong, known for his time at Houston’s beloved UB Preserv and New York’s Momofuku, and his business partner Lisa Lee began building the idea of opening a restaurant as friends in college. Their dream came true in April, 2025 with Agnes and Sherman, a modern Asian American restaurant they opened in The Heights. Named after his parents, the concept draws from Wong’s childhood memories of growing up between Chinese wedding banquets and little league games, dim sum and Motown. “If all I want to do is tell my story, then that story is ultimately about them,” says Wong. The result is a menu that feels both familiar and unexpected—equal parts comfort food and cultural exploration. Think: diner classics with Asian American soul, crafted with technique, creativity, and a healthy dose of whimsy.
Outstanding Professional in Beverage Service
June Rodil, MARCH
Born in the Philippines and raised in Texas, June is known as a leader in the beverage community, and she is one of 29 women in the Americas to earn the Master Sommelier credential. Among her most recent accolades are: Wine Enthusiast’s Sommelier of the Year 2018; Wine Enthusiast 40 Under 40 2016 and Food & Wine magazine's Sommelier of the Year 2014. June joined Houston-based Goodnight Hospitality as a partner in 2019 and in spring of 2021 they opened the fine dining concept, MARCH.
At MARCH, the wine program reflects the spirit of the Mediterranean: a place of exchange, migration, and continual transformation. Their cellar brings together the benchmark wines of the world's great vineyards along with producers whose perspectives broaden and deepen the story of wine, expanding our understanding of heritage and tradition.
Let's support and cheer for our distinctive local talents who enrich already notable Houston's culinary landscape!
Photos: Courtesy of the restaurants mentioned in this post. Header photo: Xochi; opening photo: Zaranda.