Beard Class of 2026
Every winter the James Beard Foundation names the semifinalists shaping American food, and Black chefs and owners are all over the 2026 list. These fifteen are ours — Senegalese tasting menus in New Orleans, West African cooking in Houston, Caribbean fire in the East Village, Ethiopian kitchens from Silver Spring to New Haven. Beard-recognized, Black-owned, and worth every mile.
Updated June 2026
The Full List
15 spots
Kwame Onwuachi's love letter to the Bronx and the Caribbean, and an Outstanding Chef nod to match. Book ahead.
Paul Carmichael's Caribbean cooking gets the room it deserves — a Best New Restaurant nod, and an easy yes.
Rasheeda Purdie turned a ramen pop-up into an Emerging Chef nomination. The bowls are personal and precise.
Fariyal Abdullahi cooks Ethiopian and coastal flavors at Marcus Samuelsson's Hav & Mar. A Best Chef contender, and a stunner.
Omar Tate and Cybille St. Aude-Tate built a Black food archive you can eat. West Philly's quiet powerhouse.
Family-run Ethiopian cooking — Beteseb means family — now with a Best Chef nod. Come for the injera, stay for the warmth.
A New Haven mainstay for Ethiopian cooking done right. The Beard recognition is overdue and well earned.
Leslie McCrorey Wells' Burlington favorite, and an Outstanding Restaurateur nod for the woman behind the room.
Jeffery Harris brings New Orleans soul to Cincinnati. A Best Chef nod for cooking that tastes like home.
Geoff Davis named Burdell for his grandmother and cooks like it. One of the Bay's best, and Beard agrees.
Serigne Mbaye plates Senegal and New Orleans on one table. A James Beard favorite, and a meal you'll remember.
Charly Pierre's Haitian kitchen anchors Basin Street. Griot, rum, and a Best Chef nod to back it up.
Ope Amosu turned West African comfort food into a Houston must-visit, and earned a Best Chef nomination doing it.
Bintou N'Daw cooks Senegalese flavor in Charleston, and earned a Best Chef nod doing it. Intimate and exacting.
Calabash brings West African cooking to Las Vegas, with a Best Chef nod that puts the city on notice.