James Beard Award semifinalists include former Fort Worth chef, restaurant
A former Sundance Square restaurateur and a star chef from a Fort Worth legacy are among semifinalists for this year’s James Beard Foundation awards, the nation’s top culinary recognition.
Revolver Taco Lounge founder Regino Rojas, who operated Revolver in three Fort Worth locations including an experimental Sundance pop-up before returning to Dallas, is among 20 nominees for best Texas chef.
Revolver currently operates at 2701 Main St., Dallas. It’s open for lunch and dinner daily except Monday.
Seven of the chefs nominated are from the Houston area, and six are from the Dallas area. The list includes celebrity chefs such as Tiffany Derry of Roots Southern Table in Farmers Branch — also a semifinalist for “best new restaurant” — and Matt McAllister of Homewood in Dallas.
The national semifinalists for “top restaurateur” include Chris Williams of Lucille’s in Houston, great-grandson of Fort Worth chef and entrepreneur Lucille Bishop Smith (1892-1985).
In her 50-year career, Smith was a pioneer chef, baker, teacher, food-service professional and also chief cook to generations of girls at a storied summer camp in the Texas Hill Country.
After her death in 1985 at 92, the fame of “Lucille Smith’s Chili Biscuits” faded, along with the sign on old Lucille’s Fine Foods, 924 Evans Ave.
In 1959, she met the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. on his Fort Worth visit. And in 1966, she baked and sent 330 fruitcakes to every Tarrant County soldier in Vietnam.
More than 50 years later, Chris Williams donated nearly 60,000 meals to low-income seniors during the pandemic.
(His Houston restaurant is not related to the Lucile’s Stateside Bistro in west Fort Worth.)
The James Beard semifinalists for “best restaurant” included Mixtli in San Antonio and Brennan’s in New Orleans, which also operates a Houston location.
Finalists will be announced March 16.
Here are the nominees for “best chef: Texas”:
- Alex Au-Yeung, Phat Eatery, Katy.
- Damien Brockway, Distant Relatives, Austin.
- Aaron Budorn, Bludorn, Houston.
- Sylvia Casares, Sylvia’s Enchilada Kitchen, Houston.
- Tiffany Derry, Roots Southern Table, Farmers Branch.
- Christine Ha and Tony J. Nguyen, Xin Chào, Houston.
- Quy Hoang, Blood Bros. BBQ, Bellaire.
- Kaiser Lashkari, Himalaya Restaurant, Houston.
- Matt McCallister, Homewood, Dallas.
- Steven McHugh, Cured, San Antonio.
- Misti Norris, Petra & the Beast, Dallas.
- Anastacia Quiñones-Pittman, José, Dallas.
- Esaul Ramos Jr., 2M Smokehouse, San Antonio.
- Felipe Riccio, MARCH, Houston.
- Regino Rojas, Revolver Taco Lounge, Dallas.
- John Russ, Clementine, San Antonio.
- Ernest Servantes and David Kirkland, Burnt Bean Co., Seguin.
- Iliana de la Vega, El Naranjo, Austin.
- Finn Walter, The Nicolett, Lubbock.
- Koji Yoshida, EBESU Robata & Sushi, Plano.
This story was originally published February 23, 2022 at 2:47 PM.
