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These Massachusetts restaurants and chefs are James Beard Award semifinalists

By Neal Riley

Updated on: January 22, 2025 / 1:40 PM EST / CBS Boston

Comfort Kitchen making a difference in Dorchester just a year after opening

BOSTON - The prestigious James Beard Award semifinalists picks have been announced, and Massachusetts is well-represented on the list of nominees.

The awards that are entering their 35th year recognize outstanding restaurants, chefs and bars. Below we've rounded up the semifinalists in Massachusetts, from Boston to Cape Cod.

Outstanding Restauranteur

Douglass Williams, MIDA, Boston

Chef Douglass Williams recently opened a fourth Boston location of MIDA in the Fenway neighborhood. The Italian neighborhood restaurants serve up handmade pasta and pizza. Williams was also a semifinalist for best northeast chef in 2023.

He told WBZ-TV in an interview last year that he was inspired by his mother's cooking and said he has an "insatiable desire to cook for people."

"I love just having a party every day of the week," he said.

Chef/Owner Douglas Williams prepares food at Mida, a restaurant in Boston's South End. Jonathan Wiggs/The Boston Globe via Getty Images

Outstanding Chef

Cassie Piuma, Sarma, Somerville

Sarma in Somerville (Winter Hill), Ana Sortun's new restaurant. Lamb Kofte Sliders. Lane Turner/The Boston Globe via Getty Images

Best New Restaurant

LUNE, Dennis Port

Somaek, Boston

Best New Bar

Equal Measure, Boston

Merai, Brookline

Strawberry cheesecake cocktail at Merai, a Thai-inspired bar and restaurant. Jonathan Wiggs/The Boston Globe via Getty Images

Outstanding Professional in Beverage Service

Alyssa Mikiko DiPasquale, The Koji Club, Brighton

The Koji Club at the Charles River Speedway is the only sake bar in the northeast and has one of the most diverse sake menus in the world, owner Alyssa Mikiko DiPasquale told WBZ-TV in 2023.

"And we change [the menu] seasonally," she said. "So you can always come back and try something new."

The Koji Club, a sake bar at the Speedway. Barry Chin/The Boston Globe via Getty Images

Outstanding Professional in Cocktail Service

Oscar Simoza, The Wig Shop, Boston

Best Chef: Northeast

John DaSilva, Chickadee, Boston

A half fried chicken with with brown butter hummus, cauliflower cashew pilaf, spiced cheddar biscuits, honey butter, and pepper jelly served at Chickadee Restaurant in the Seaport in Boston. Matthew J. Lee/The Boston Globe via Getty Images

Conor Dennehy, Tallula, Cambridge

Valentine Howell, Black Cat, Jamaica Plain

Clockwise from foreground: Coconut Shrimp Ceviche, Red Snapper Rundown, and Yuca Con Mojo at Black Cat @ Vee Vee. Pat Greenhouse/The Boston Globe via Getty Images

Kwasi Kwaa, Comfort Kitchen, Boston

The Black-owned, woman-owned and immigrant-owned Comfort Kitchen in Dorchester has quickly become one of the best restaurants in Boston since opening in 2023.

The Upham's Corner spot serving African-inspired food was a James Beard Award semifinalist for best new restaurant last year.

Za'atar Brown Butter Trout at Comfort Kitchen. Jonathan Wiggs/The Boston Globe via Getty Images

"We always used to have conversations about, if we had an opportunity to do it ourselves, how would that look like," said chef and partner Kwasi Kwaa told WBZ-TV. "At any given dinner service there will be Black folks, Asian folks. Different races, different classes, different ages.

Rachel Miller, Nightshade Noodle Bar, Lynn

Erin Miller, Urban Hearth, Cambridge

Michael Serpa, Select Oyster, Boston

The Spanish octopus at Select Oyster Bar. John Tlumacki/The Boston Globe via Getty Images

Boston

Neal Riley

Neal J. Riley is a digital producer for CBS Boston. He has been with WBZ-TV since 2014. His work has appeared in The Boston Globe and The San Francisco Chronicle. Neal is a graduate of Boston University.