Three Charlotte Culinary Leaders Named James Beard Semifinalists
Local nominees include two chefs and a mixologist
When the James Beard Foundation announced its 2025 Restaurant and Chef Award semifinalists on Wednesday, Charlotte restaurateurs, foodies and industry members probably recognized three notable names.
Among those considered for Best Chef in the Southeast region — which includes Georgia, Kentucky, Tennessee, West Virginia and the Carolinas — the foundation selected Sam Diminich of Restaurant Constance and Community Matters Cafe’s Chayil Johnson as semifinalists. For Outstanding Professional in Cocktail Service, a brand new category this year, the foundation chose Supperland’s Colleen Hughes as one of 20 who are in the running.
Best Chef: Sam Diminich, Restaurant Constance
Restaurant Constance founder and chef Sam Diminich has transcended his own inspiring personal journey of hard-won recovery from addiction to not only find success but capitalize on that success by giving back to the community.
In 2020, Diminich launched Your Farms Your Table (YFYT), a restaurant group that supports local farmers and shares community-wide stories about the food we eat and the people who provide it.
Read more: At Restaurant Constance, Sam Diminich Cooks Like His Life Depends on It (2023)
In Queen City Nerve’s most recent issue, contributor Kayleigh Ruller reported on Diminich’s collaborative project with nonprofit mental health treatment center HopeWay to provide daily meals to the residential patients, outpatient clients, visitors, and staff at the center’s southwest Charlotte campus.
“This nomination is not a singular achievement but a reflection of the collective efforts of the exceptional team at Your Farms Your Table,” Diminich wrote in a statement to Queen City Nerve on Wednesday.
He noted that the nomination highlights a belief shared by chefs, farmers, and industry partners that they can create something far greater together than they could working alone.
“[That] belief [is] embodied by the success of Restaurant Constance,” Diminich continued. “When passionate individuals come together, we can truly push the boundaries of possibility within our industry and beyond. I am deeply humbled to be among this accomplished group of industry colleagues and friends and inspired by what we can achieve next.”
Best Chef: Chayil Johnson, Community Matters Cafe
For Chayil Johnson, “Community Matters” is much more than the name of his cafe in Uptown’s Third Ward — it’s a slogan and a driving force in his life.
Like Diminich, Johnson turns to community as a way to help people find sobriety. The Piedmont Culinary Guild board member and executive chef at Community Matters Cafe regularly employs graduates of the Charlotte Rescue Mission’s recovery program.
“I work with the men and women of Charlotte who are battling substance abuse and addiction, by teaching life skills and developing them in the cafe through training,” Johnson states on the Piedmont Culinary Guild website.
Hailing from Laplace, Louisiana, and influenced by his cultural upbringing in New Orleans, Johnson sees food as a way to share Black culture, history and stories. His popular menu items include johnnycake, a cornmeal pancake based on a recipe developed by Native Americans and enslaved people. The cafe’s rice grits harken to a West African method for cooking broken rice.
Outstanding Professional in Cocktail Service: Colleen Hughes, Supperland
As a multi-award-winning mixologist and beverage director for the Tonidandel-Brown restaurant group, Collen Hughes oversees bar concepts at Supperland, Haberdish, Ever Andalo, Growlers Pour House and the soon-to-open Leluia Hall.
Read more: Leluia Hall Proves Tonidandel-Brown’s Penchant for Preservation
Accolades for the doyenne of Charlotte’s cocktail scene go back to 2016, when Hughes was named Bartender of the Year by Thrillest and Mixologist of the Year by Creative Loafing.
It’s her cocktail alchemy at Supperland that has drawn the James Beard Foundation’s focus, a Plaza Midwood restaurant that has already gained national recognition, landing at No. 15 on Esquire’s 2022 list of Best New Restaurants in America. In its review of the upscale eatery, the national publication singled out Hughes as its Cocktail Guru of the Year.
Read more: Supperland Makes Gallant Strides Toward Perfection in Plaza Midwood (2021)
“The cocktails at North Carolina’s Supperland aren’t just layered and delicious,” Esquire said. “They are thoughtfully woven into the very experience of dinner, particularly in the restaurant’s downstairs speakeasy. You have Colleen Hughes to thank for that.”
What’s next
The fields will be narrowed on April 2 when five finalists will be made public in each category, followed by the unveiling of winners at the James Beard Restaurant and Chef Awards ceremony on June 16 at the Lyric Opera of Chicago.
No one from Charlotte has ever won one of the coveted prizes.
“We congratulate the 2025 Restaurant and Chef Award semifinalists, each of whom displays a notable commitment to their craft and exemplifies leadership,” stated Lauren Saria and Erinn Tucker-Oluwole, Restaurant and Chef Awards Committee co-chairs, in a foundation press release. “It is an honor to recognize your distinctive talents that enrich America’s culinary landscape.”
Launched in 1990, with the first awards given in 1991, The Restaurant and Chef Awards is marking its 35th year celebrating excellence in dining experiences, ranging from fine dining to casual establishments.
