Today, the James Beard Foundation announced this year’s semifinalists, revealing the chefs and restaurants potentially up for consideration for the 2025 James Beard Awards, considered one of the biggest honors and acknowledgments in the restaurant industry.

A chef who trained in Napa Valley, New York and London, RJ Yoakum is nominated for a Best Emerging James Beard Aware, though he’s already an executive chef.

Ten Michigan restaurants and chefs have been named as semifinalists in the 2025 James Beard Awards. Many of the names longlisted are familiar to the institution, which is considered the top honor in culinary excellence in the United States. While the names have been nominated before, some of the categories for them are new.