The finalists for Chicago’s top local food honor, the Jean Banchet Awards, were announced Thursday morning. This year’s list includes everything from Chicago steakhouses to a South Side barbecue spot, plus Middle Eastern food in Lincoln Park and Vietnamese fare in Pilsen.
The annual awards recognize excellence across 12 categories, including Best New Restaurant, Best Neighborhood Restaurant and Rising Chef of the Year.
“I think that it’s a great thing that once a year, our industry takes a deep breath and looks back upon the previous year and pays respect and homage to those that honed their craft so hardcore that they really kind of become a reason as to why the city is such a great food city,” said Michael Muser, the Banchet’s executive director.
The awards will also recognize a couple of Chicago restaurant icons. Chef Grant Achatz of Alinea will receive the Culinary Excellence Award. Plus, Gene & Georgetti, the well-known River North steakhouse, will be recognized with the first-ever Iconic Restaurant of the Year Award, reserved for establishments that have been open at least 25 years.
“That category is meant to just pay respect to a restaurant that really has been around and become a part of the story of Chicago,” Muser said. “That you almost can’t even tell the story of Chicago restaurants without naming such a space, like Gene & Georgetti. It’s kind of woven itself into the fabric of the tale of our city.”
The finalists are selected by a group of anonymous “food nerds,” as Muser puts it, who dine out throughout the year and convene monthly to discuss what they’ve eaten.
The awards are named in honor of the legendary chef who ran Wheeling’s Le Francais restaurant in the 1970s and ’80s. Muser said Banchet helped put Chicago’s dining scene on the map.
Awardees will be announced at a downtown ceremony on Jan. 25.
Here are the nominees for the 2026 Banchet Awards:
Restaurant of the Year
Cellar Door Provisions
HaiSous Vietnamese Kitchen
Indienne
Proxi
Chef of the Year
Andrew Lim (Perilla, Perilla Steakhouse, Noriko)
Jennifer Kim (Proxi)
John Manion (El Che, Brasero)
Zubair Mohajir (Lilac Tiger, The Coach House, Mirra, Sarima)
Best New Restaurant
Cafe Yaya
Feld
Il Carciofo
Void
Rising Chef of the Year
Alex Cochran (Cellar Door Provisions)
Bailey Sullivan (Monteverde)
César Murillo (North Pond)
Javauneeka Jacobs (Frontera Grill)
Best Neighborhood Restaurant
Bungalow by Middle Brow
Coda di Volpe
Mahari
Maplewood
Best Heritage Restaurant
M’daKhan
Nine Garden
Tesfa Ethiopian Cuisine
Torizen
Best Counter Service
Kanin
Rendang Republic
Sanders BBQ Supply Co
Taquizas Valdez
Pastry Chef of the Year
Courtney Kenyon (Obelix)
Justin Lerias (Del Sur)
Mary Eder-McClure (Galit and Cafe Yaya)
Dedre McGee (Pookie Crack Cakes)
Bar of the Year or Beverage Program of the Year
Cantina Rosa – Maria Rodriguez
Daisies – Nicole Yarovinsky
Elske – Monica Casillas-Rios
Gus’ Sip & Dip – Kevin Beary and Scott Kitsmiller
Sommelier of the Year
Alex Cuper (Brasero)
Emily Sher (Elske)
Jonas Bittencourt (Class Act)
Owen Huzar (John’s Food & Wine)
Best Hospitality
Asador Bastian
Feld
Minyoli
Perilla Fare
Best Design
Adalina Prime
Matilda
Noriko Handroll Bar
The Alston
Iconic Restaurant of the Year
Gene & Georgetti
Culinary Excellence Award
Grant Achatz
Courtney Kueppers is an arts and culture reporter at WBEZ.