Semifinalists for the 2025 James Beard Foundation awards are out, and Montana restaurants and chefs are in the running to win awards. Montana is no stranger to winning James Beard awards, so let's take a look at the semifinalists.

Winning a James Beard Award is a big deal. The James Beard Foundation recognizes the finest and most innovative restaurants and chefs every year. They seek out excellence, creativity, originality, and sustainability in the culinary world.

The James Beard Awards honor those who are creating exceptional food, food media content and better food systems while demonstrating a commitment to racial and gender equity, community, sustainability, and a culture where all can thrive. (jamesbeard.org)

Like many prestigious awards in large industries, candidates who wish to be considered for a James Beard Award need to submit their work and pay an application fee. Restaurateurs and chefs can also get nominated via the Open Call for Recommendations process.

The restaurants and chefs that are discussed in this article are semifinalists for the 2025 James Beard Awards. Then there's the waiting period...

Wednesday, April 2nd is when the nominees will be announced, with the winners being announced on Monday, June 16th at the James Beard Restaurant and Chef Awards in Chicago.

Established in 1990 with the first awards given in 1991, the James Beard Awards® are among the nation’s most prestigious honors recognizing leaders in the culinary and food media industries, and those in the broader food systems. (jamesbeard.org)

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There are 25 different categories to become a semifinalist within the James Beard Awards, with 3 new categories in 2025: Best New Bar, Outstanding Professional in Beverage Service, and Outstanding Professional in Cocktail Service.

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The Union by Old Salt via Facebook
The Union by Old Salt via Facebook
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SEE PREVIOUS MONTANA NODS FROM JAMES BEARD AWARDS

As far as James Beard WINNERS, over the years there have only been two restaurants that have made it to the top, and they both were in the "America's Classics" category:

  • Pekin Noodle Parlor (Butte, Montana) - America's Classics Restaurant & Chef, Winner 2023
  • Matt's Place (Butte Montana) - America's Classics Restaurant & Chef, Winner 2016 (Sadly, Matt's Place is now permanently closed)

The James Beard Foundation once said these words about the now closed Matt's Place in Butte, Montana:

The masterpiece is the nut burger, crowned with crushed peanuts mixed into mayonnaise; the topping melds with sliced pickles, tomatoes, and onions righteously.

Served with homemade onion rings and a strawberry milkshake made with house-churned ice cream, such a meal is a blissful evocation of Montana’s culinary culture. (jamesbeard.org)

The Social Haus Montana via Facebook
The Social Haus Montana via Facebook
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