Orlando chefs and restaurateurs earn 2025 James Beard Award nominations

The 2025 James Beard Award semifinalists were announced Wednesday morning and six Central Florida chefs, restaurants and restaurateurs earned honors in four categories: Jason and Sue Chin for Outstanding Restaurateur, Ômo by Jônt for Best New Restaurant, Yohann Le Bescond for Outstanding Pastry Chef/Baker and Lordfer Lalicon and Sonny Nguyen for Best Chef: South.

“No way,” said an incredulous Jason Chin. “Are you serious? Holy shit! I gotta sit down and collect myself.”

Chin and his wife, Sue, were nominated in the same category in 2022 and lead the teams behind four of the finest restaurants in town — The Osprey, Reyes Mezcaleria, The Monroe and Seito Sushi, which is celebrating its 25th year, under the Good Salt Restaurant Group banner.

“We were having such a stressful morning, so this news really brightens up our day!” Sue said.

“A couple of weeks ago, we had our company-wide party and there was an immense sense of pride to see them all in one place,” Jason said after collecting himself. “My mom was there and she’s always asking me why we’re doing so much and why we open restaurants, but when she saw our whole group together, she was blown away and so proud of me and Sue that I just broke down and lost it. I just want to dedicate this to my mom and dad.”

Lo Lalicon, whose restaurant, Kaya, was a finalist in the Best New Restaurant category last year, was nominated for Best Chef: South along with Sonny Nguyen, the man behind Domu, Tori Tori, Edoboy, Rion’s Ocean Room and Gyukatsu Rose.

“Oh my God, are you serious?” Nguyen said when I told him the news. “Dude! Uhhh, I’m at a loss for words. I’m literally buying some plates for Gyukatsu Rose and my heart is racing! Man, this is crazy! This is an honor. This is a dream come true! I’m shaking.” Then he added, “I better pull over ‘cuz I’m driving.”

Lalicon was equally effusive. “I wasn’t expecting this! It’s so great to be a champion for Orlando! Thank you to the community for the support!”

I had the opportunity to make croissants with Le Bescond, the executive pastry chef of the World Equestrian Center in Ocala, last year and let me just say that the man can bake. It’s no surprise he was a finalist in the Food Network’s Summer Baking Championship last year, but he, too, was taken aback by the Beard Award nomination.

“As someone who came to the United States less than 10 years ago, this feels so surreal,” Le Bescond said. “This is one of my proudest moments. We work so hard here on developing the right culture, the training, the way we take care of our staff. I can’t wait to see what the future holds.”

Also not surprising is a Best New Restaurant nomination for Ômo by Jônt. It vied for my Top Table of 2024, along with William Shen’s Sorekara, and is an exemplar of restaurant service in this town. Chef Ryan Ratino is in Japan and was awoken to the news very early in the morning.

“It was 4 a.m.,” says Ratino, “and I started seeing all the texts. Honestly, it was so cool. This is a very special moment for the entire Hive Hospitality team and for me personally as I started my culinary career in Orlando. Ômo by Jônt holds a special place in my heart and I’m extremely proud of our team for their dedication and diligence.”

What happens next?

Subcommittee members and judges of the James Beard Restaurant and Chef Awards voting body — comprised of food and beverage writers, critics, editors, book authors, media producers, food studies scholars and culinary instructors — will anonymously visit the nominated restaurants in their region and score each semifinalist on a number of criteria. The semifinalists with the highest average score will be announced as finalists on April 2.

Judges and subcommittee members will then dine at the restaurants of the finalists, participate in committee-led discussions regarding their dining experiences, then vote with the top scoring nominee per category being announced as the winner.

More information on the voting process can be found at JamesBeard.org.

Winners will be announced at an awards ceremony in Chicago on June 16.

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This article appears in Jan 22-28, 2025.