Pittsburgh chef and restaurant make list of James Beard semifinalists

Pittsburgh is represented by a chef and restaurant on the semifinalist list for the prestigious James Beard Awards.

Jamilka Borges, the co-owner of Lilith in Shadyside, is a semifinalist for best chef in the mid-Atlantic. The Central and Eastern European vegan restaurant Apteka is a semifinalist for the category of outstanding wine and other beverages.

It's not Borges' first nod from the James Beard Awards. In 2015, she was named a rising star chef semifinalist, and in 2019, she was a nominee for best chef in the mid-Atlantic. 

According to Lilith's website, the restaurant was born from the passion and dreams of Borges and her business partner, chef Dianne DeStefano. Lilith's menu features items like skate, beef filet and farrotto.

"Emerging from years of culinary dedication and a shared vision cultivated in Pittsburgh's finest kitchens, Lilith represents the realization of our dream to craft a unique dining experience together," the website says. 

Apteka, a vegan restaurant on the border of Bloomfield and Lawrenceville, got a nod for its wine selection. Its website lists pages and pages of wine from countries like Austria, Croatia, Hungary, Serbia, Slovakia and Slovenia.

The James Beard Foundation said nominees will be announced on March 31 and winners will be celebrated at an awards ceremony on June 15 in Chicago. 

"These semifinalists join a constellation of James Beard Award–recognized leaders who collectively embody the breadth of American culinary excellence," the foundation said on its website.