2025 James Beard Awards Entry and Recommendation Period Opens

12:00 am

The entry and recommendation period for the 2025 James Beard Awards® presented by Capital One is officially open until November 29, 2024, at 11:59 p.m. ET. The annual James Beard Awards recognize exceptional talent in the culinary arts, hospitality, food media, and the broader food system. The Awards also recognize a demonstrated commitment to equity, community, sustainability, and creating a culture where all can thrive. 

The 2025 James Beard Awards will celebrate an incredible milestone—the 35th anniversary of the founding of the Awards—commemorating the transformative role it has played in recognizing culinary excellence and shaping the evolution of American food culture, while reaffirming the Foundation’s commitment to leading and supporting the industry for years to come. Marking this pivotal year, the Awards will introduce several developments including the launch of a brand new Impact Awards program and an expanded focus on beverages, with three new categories as part of the Restaurant and Chef Awards.

The 2024 James Beard Awards ceremonies—the most attended in recent years—brought together more than 2,500 of the country's top chefs, restaurateurs, food media, and culinary enthusiasts to recognize the 2024 James Beard Award winners and honorees over a weekend of celebrations and industry gatherings throughout Chicago. 

The 2025 Awards ceremonies will once again return to Chicago from June 14-16. 

The James Beard Awards consists of four separate recognition programs—Media Awards (Book, Broadcast Media, and Journalism) and Restaurant and Chef Awards—as well as three achievement awards including Lifetime Achievement, Humanitarian of the Year, and a newly launched Impact Awards. 

Impact Awards

The James Beard Foundation is pleased to present its Impact Awards, born out of the organization’s impact and advocacy work. This program, part of the Foundation’s Achievement Awards, honors changemakers in climate change, sustainability, equity, advocacy, and industry culture and practices. These awards will include an open call for recommendations, as well as input from an advisory council comprising nationally recognized food system and industry experts. Honorees will be chosen by the Impact Committee of the James Beard Board of Trustees. The Leadership Awards, first given in 2011, were retired in June 2024.

Addiitional Updates

Every year, the James Beard Awards subcommittees and the Foundation may make changes or additions to categories in order to reflect and capture current trends in the industry and to align with the overall priorities of the organization. 

New expansion – Beverage Awards: To more holistically acknowledge the importance and full breadth of beverage—a vital segment of the culinary and hospitality industry—over the next few years, the Foundation will focus on building this program, introducing three (3) new categories that will be rolled out under the Restaurant and Chef Awards in 2025, in addition to the pre-existing categories for the Restaurant and Chef and Media Awards. 

Pre-existing categories

Restaurant and Chef Awards 

  • Outstanding Bar

  • Outstanding Wine and Other Beverages Program

  • Media Awards 

    • Book Awards – Beverage with Recipes

    • Book Awards – Beverage without Recipes 

    • Journalism Awards – Beverage

    • Broadcast Media – criteria for categories has been expanded to include food or beverage-related content

New beverage-focused categories for the Restaurant and Chef Awards

  • Best New Bar: Presented to a wine bar, beer bar, cocktail bar, coffee bar, or any other business whose primary offering is beverage, opened between October 1, 2023 through September 30, 2024, that already demonstrates excellence in beverages, seems likely to make a significant impact in years to come, and demonstrates consistent excellence in the preparation of drinks, sourcing, service, hospitality, atmosphere, and operations. Business may be a stand-alone bar or within an establishment, and may or may not serve food.  

  • Outstanding Professional in Beverage Service: Presented to a service professional who curates and serves wine, beer, or other offerings such as sake, low and non-alcoholic beverages in a restaurant or bar setting; or winery, distillery or brewery that also serves food. Candidate has set high standards, demonstrates creativity and consistency in excellence, innovation, hospitality; is making efforts to create a sustainable work culture, and has served as an exceptional example or mentor for other beverage professionals.  

    • Eligible candidates must have been in the industry for at least seven years.   

    • Eligible candidates may include beverage directors, sommeliers, and cicerones, etc. 

  • Outstanding Professional in Cocktail Service: Presented to a service professional who creates and serves cocktails or other offerings such as low and non-alcoholic beverages. Candidate has set high standards, demonstrates creativity and consistency in excellence, innovation, hospitality; is making efforts to create a sustainable work culture, and has served as an exceptional example or mentor for other beverage professionals.  

    • Eligible candidates must have been in the industry for at least seven years.   

    • Eligible candidates may include bartenders, cocktail professionals or owners, who are creative leads and/or are active in the crafting of their offerings.

Restaurant and Chef Awards categories with time eligibility changes

As of the 2025 cycle, the following categories’ eligibility timeframes have been increased. These were reduced as of the 2022 cycle to address the impact of COVID-19 on the industry: 

  • Outstanding Chef: Eligible candidates must have been working as a chef for 5 or more consecutive years 

  • Outstanding Hospitality: Eligible candidates must have been in operation for 5 or more years 

  • Outstanding Pastry Chef or Baker: Eligible candidates must have been working as a pastry chef or chef who makes desserts or breads for the past 5 years 

  • Outstanding Restaurateur: Eligible candidates must have been in the restaurant business for at least 7 years

Media Awards program category changes and new categories:

  • Book

    • Restaurant and Professional has been changed to Professional and Restaurant to underscore that this category is designated for books that include more advanced culinary techniques and are instructional in nature. The category is also open to books that focus on recipes from restaurant settings.  

    • The definitions of General and International have been tweaked slightly to provide more clarity to entrants. 

  • Broadcast Media 

  • NEW: Broadcast Media Hall of Fame Award 

    • This award recognizes a visionary individual who has revolutionized the way food is presented and discussed on television, radio, or streaming platforms. Embodying the Foundation's core values of Good Good for Good®, they use their platform to both entertain and educate and inspire viewers about the vast world of food. 

    • The Broadcast Subcommittee selects the honoree for this category. No entries will be accepted.

  • NEW: Travel Visual Media 

    • This category celebrates excellence in food- or beverage-focused travel shows. Entries should showcase the unique culinary culture and traditions of a specific region or country, highlighting the connection between people, food, regions, and communities. 

  • NEW: Competition Visual Media 

    • This category recognizes creativity and innovation in competitive cooking shows. Entries can be professional chef competitions, home cook challenges, or programs focusing on specific culinary disciplines (baking, grilling, etc.). 

  • NEW: Lifestyle Visual Media 

    • This category honors excellence in food-centric talk shows and lifestyle programs that explore food or beverage alongside broader societal and cultural themes. Entries can range from interview-based shows featuring chefs and food personalities to those that delve into food history, science, and culture.

  • Unscripted Visual Media, Visual Media-Long Form, and Visual Media-Short Form have been retired as of the 2025 Awards Cycle 

    • Medallion Policy Changes

      • Beginning in 2025 for all categories, the award is given to the program as a whole. One medallion is issued for each award. Contributors (maximum of six) each receive a certificate.

  • Journalism

    • NEW: Narrative Photography

      • This category recognizes exemplary storytelling through the use of photography within food culture. An entry is composed of images from one published piece that captures a visual narrative with skill, perspective and style. 

      • This category will replace the Innovative Visual Storytelling Award.

    • Emerging Voice 

      • Time restrictions have been removed for this category. This award is given by the Journalism Awards subcommittee to recognize a journalist or media outlet whose work brings a fresh perspective to an important aspect of food culture.  

Awards Submissons Process

Deadlines:

Open Call for Entry begins at 9 a.m. ET on Tuesday, October 1 and closes Friday, November 29 at 11:59 p.m. ET. To begin an open call submission, follow the link here. Physical book copies for Book Awards entries must arrive at the warehouse for review by Friday, December 6, 2024. 

Awards Submission “How-To” Videos:

Visit the Foundation's  YouTube page to watch the James Beard Awards explainer videos including how to submit recommendations to the Restaurant and Chef Awards, entries to the Media Awards, and advice on crafting your impact statement.  

Recommendation and Entry Overview

Costs

  • Submitting a recommendation for the Impact or Restaurant and Chef Awards is free. 

  • The Media Awards (Book, Broadcast Media, and Journalism) require an entry fee of $85 per entry. Entrants may request a fee waiver due to financial constraints. Entries will not be penalized if this option is selected.

Eligibility Documents

  • Information regarding the 2025 Awards programs, including eligibility and criteria guidelines, can be found within the submissions portal. 

Impact Statement

As part of all Awards submissions, the Foundation requires a short statement, written (150-300 words) or recorded (audio or video, 1-2 minutes) by the entrant or recommender. The statement offers a chance to tell the committees and judges a little more about the candidate and their work and how their work expresses aspects of the mission and the Foundation’s values: equity, transparency, respect, integrity, and community. The statement is reviewed for content and not for language fluency, video quality, or production value. More information about the impact statement requirements for each program can be found within the submissions portal.

2025 Award Ceremonies

The 2025 James Beard Awards dates are:

  • Media Awards: Saturday, June 14, 2025

  • Impact Awards (new program): Sunday, June 15, 2025

  • Restaurant and Chef Awards: Monday, June 16, 2025

 

For more information regarding the James Beard Awards, the policies and procedures of each program, and the Awards vetting and ethics process, please visit the James Beard Awards page. 

Hotel information, including discounted media room rates, will be announced in early 2025. Information will be on the James Beard Foundation Awards page.