The 2024 semifinalists for the James Beard Awards, one of the food industry’s biggest national recognitions, have been announced. Seventeen Chicago restaurants, chefs, and bakers are among them, the most in several years. Nominees will be selected from amongst the semifinalists and announced on Wednesday, April 3. Winners will be announced in Chicago at the Lyric Opera, where the awards ceremony has taken place for years, on Monday, June 10. Last year Chicago had two winners. 

Here are Chicago’s 2024 semifinalists. Check back early next week for the winners of Chicago’s local food recognition, the Jean Banchet Awards, which has some overlap with the Beards but also spotlights some hidden gems. 

Outstanding Restaurateur

Marcos Carbajal, Carnitas Uruapan – This Pilsen restaurant is a stalwart of the neighborhood, founded in 1975 and serving up porky carnitas for decades.

Nicolas Poilevey and Oliver Poilevey, Obélix, Le Bouchon, and Taqueria Chingón – The Poilevey brothers have been on the rise, with their decadent River North French-plus-global-flavors Obélix racking up best new restaurant nods. That was preceded by the inventive Taqueria Chingón in Bucktown, while everything stems from the same neighborhood’s French bistro Le Bouchon, which was run by their parents for years until they took over.

Outstanding Chef

John Shields and Karen Urie Shields, Smyth – Winning Outstanding Chef at the Beards would cap a year for the Shields in which their tasting course West Loop restaurant Smyth became one of only thirteen restaurants in the United States to be awarded three Michelin stars.

Outstanding Restaurant

The Duck Inn – Bridgeport’s neighborhood restaurant par excellence, the Duck Inn has been quietly serving versions of Chicago street food, inventive cocktails, and of course, duck, for years from the corner of a residential block just off the Chicago River.

Emerging Chef

Zubair Mohajir, The Coach House by Wazwan – Mohajir serves the rare halal tasting menu at The Coach House by Wazwan in Wicker Park, trawling Indian history and regions for unusual flavors and combinations. He recently reopened the more casual Wazwan as Lilac Tiger. We profiled him last year.

Best New Restaurant

Atelier – Atelier replaced the unique tasting menu restaurant Elizabeth in Lincoln Square but is run by Tim Lacey, a veteran of Elizabeth. Lacey brought in the rising star chef Christian Hunter to craft an eclectic, clever menu in the new restaurant. We spoke to both Lacey and Hunter right before Atelier opened a year ago.

Outstanding Bakery

Loba Pastry+Coffee – It was a long road to opening this Roscoe Village bakery (the owner and baker Valeria Socorro Velazquez Lindsten turned to regulation crowdfunding), but her Mexican-influenced, creative pastries have been a hit in her new brick-and-mortar spce.