Boston chefs and bars named James Beard Award semifinalists

More than two dozen Boston-area chefs and restaurants made the just-revealed semifinalist list for this year's James Beard Awards. Some of the local highlights for what's been dubbed the Oscars of the dining industry include MIDA’s Douglass Williams, who's up for Outstanding Restauranteur (he owns locations in the South End and Newton), and multi-time nominee Cassie Piuma of Somerville's Sarma returns to the semi-finalist pool for Outstanding Chef.

No Massachusetts establishments were named for Outstanding Restaurant. But establishments in Maine and Rhode Island are in the running: Havana in Bar Harbor and Oberlin in Providence. Nikhil Naiker of NIMKI — also from the Ocean State — is up for Emerging Chef as are Jason Eckerson and Kate Hamm of Fish & Whistle in Biddeford, Maine.

Greater Boston is well represented in the Best Chef: Northeast arena with Kwasi Kwaa of Comfort Kitchen, Select Oyster’s Michael Serpa, John DaSilva of Chickadee, Valentine Howell at Black Cat in Jamaica Plain, Erin Miller from Cambridge’s Urban Hearth, Conor Dennehy of Tallula (also Cambridge), and second-time nominee Rachel Miller at Nightshade Noodle Bar in Lynn.

Rhode Island-based hopefuls for Best Chef include Subat Dilmurat at Jahunger, Gift Horse’s Sky Haneul Kim, Robert Andreozzi of Pizza Marvin — all located in Providence — and Nick Rabar of Honeybird Kitchen & Cocktails in East Providence. Also joining the party from New England: May Day's Avery Buck in Burlington, Vermont and Nicole Nocella with Stalk of Dover, New Hampshire.

Not surprisingly Portland, Maine — a city famed for its food culture — earned a number of nods, including for Brant Dadaleares of Gross Confestion Bar in the Outstanding Pastry Chef or Baker bracket. 

A handful of new categories are on deck this year to celebrate the James Beard Awards' 35th anniversary. The additions include Best New Bar, Outstanding Professional in Beverage Service and Outstanding Professional in Cocktail Service (Oscar Simoza of The Wig Shop in Boston was nominated for the latter).

Equal Measure — a sister cocktail bar attached to Eastern Standard in Boston — is being recognized for its debut, as well as Brookline’s Merai. Alyssa Mikiko DiPasquale’s skills with sake at The Koji Club in Brighton earned her recognition for Outstanding Professional in Beverage Service.

Bay State establishments are also on the Best New Restaurant list, including Somaek in Downtown Crossing (a project from chef Jamie Bissonnette) and LUNE in Dennis Port on the Cape.

The James Beard Award finalists will be announced on Wednesday, April 2. Winners will be revealed and celebrated at the James Beard Restaurant and Chef Awards ceremony in Chicago on June 16.