Today the James Beard Foundation announced the list of finalists for the 2025 James Beard Awards, taking place June 16 in Chicago. While not all of the 14 semifinalists made it, we are excited to report six did, including one for the new category, Outstanding Professional in Cocktail Service. Here’s the complete run down.
- Outstanding Chef: Josh Niernberg of Bin 707 in Grand Junction
- Outstanding Restaurant: Frasca Food and Wine in Boulder
- Best New Restaurant: Alma Fonda Fina in Denver
- Outstanding Pastry Chef or Bakers: Carolyn Nugent and Alen Ramos of Poulette Bakeshop in Parker
- Outstanding Professional in Cocktail Service: McLain Hedges and Mary Allison Wright of Yacht Club in Denver
- Best Chef Mountain: Penelope Wong of Yuan Wonton in Denver
Congrats to these nominees, and to those who didn’t make it this far, you are all just as awesome. Read on for a little bit of history on each of the finalists.
Josh Niernberg of Bin 707 in Grand Junction
Chef Josh Niernberg has been a semifinalist for Outstanding Chef two other times, in 2023 and 2022. He also was a semifinalist in 2020 for Best Chefs in America Mountain, which was the official name five years ago. Niernberg, along with his wife Jodi, opened Bin 707 in February, 2011. They also opened Tacoparty in Grand Junction in 2017, churning out plates of tacos six at a time. This is the first time the chef has secured the nomination.
Frasca Food and Wine in Boulder
Most people have heard of Frasca Food and Wine in Boulder, it’s been one of the best fine dining restaurants in the state since Bobby Stuckey and Lachlan Mackinnon-Patterson opened it 20 years ago. The restaurant has won two James Beard Awards, one for Outstanding Service in 2019 and the other for Outstanding Wine Program in 2013. Chef Mackinnon-Patterson also received the award for Best Chefs in America Southwest in 2008 (today the award is called Best Chef Mountain). Overall Frasca has been a nominee 11 times since opening, and a semifinalist four times.
Alma Fonda Fina
Chef Johnny Curiel’s LoHi restaurant Alma Fonda Fina has been non-stop since opening at the end of 2023. It received a Michelin Star in 2024 and Curiel also took home the organization’s award for Colorado’s Young Chef. Even more accolades fell on the restaurant and the chef. Not that he slowed down. Over the year Curiel, along with his wife Kasie, opened three more restaurants including Mezcaleria Alma next to Alma Fonda Fina, Alteño in Cherry Creek, and Cozobi Fonda Fina in Boulder. All serve upscale Mexican fare, and each has its own nuances. This is the first James Beard recognition for the Curiels and their restaurants.
Carolyn Nugent and Alen Ramos of Poulette Bakeshop in Parker
If you haven’t heard of Poulette Bakeshop, you either you don’t like pastry or you’re not in the metro area. This is the second time in a row owners Carolyn Nugent and Alen Ramos have been on the list for Outstanding Pastry Chef, but it’s the first year they’ve made it to the final list of nominees. The bakeshop opened at the end of 2021, churning out croissants, brioche buns, naturally-fermented bread, tarts, eclairs, and more. The chefs aren’t new to working in a fantastic eatery, between the two they have worked at El Bulli in Spain, The Fat Duck in the UK, Bouchon Bakery in Beverly Hills, and Tartine Bakery in San Francisco, to name a few.
McLain Hedges and Mary Allison Wright of Yacht Club in Denver
It’s been a year of celebration for McLain Hedges and Mary Allison Wright, the couple who have owned and run Yacht Club in Denver for the past three years. It’s the first year the two have been nominated for a James Beard Award, and the first year the organization has offered the category Outstanding Professional in Cocktail Service. In 2023 Yacht Club took home the Ketel One Sustainable Bar Award. Last year it got Best U.S. Cocktail Bar during the Tales of the Cocktail Foundation awards. This year the bar garnered the Best Bar trophy from the 2025 Spill Awards. Plus, they sell really good hotdogs.
Penelope Wong of Yuan Wonton in Denver
Congrats to Penelope Wong, who is in the running for Best Chef Mountain for the second year in a row. Last year she lost out to another Colorado chef, Matt Vawter of Rootstalk in Breckenridge. This year she is the only local chef in the category. Wong opened Yuan Wonton in Park Hill in 2023, the brick-and-mortar version of her popular food truck of the same name. The truck launched in 2019, showcasing the chef’s handmade dumplings. Soon, fans lined up at every chance to get some. Wong was also a semifinalist for this category in 2023.
