Denton and Dallas each have one representative in the 2026 James Beard Awards, after the company narrowed its semifinalists down to nominees.
Osteria Il Muro’s Scott Girling is up for nomination for Best Chef: Texas, and Lucia’s Maggie Huff in Dallas is nominated for Outstanding Pastry Chef or Baker.
The two have survived a multi-round process to become nominees after being named semifinalists in January, and now stand poised to take home their respective awards during the James Beard Restaurant and Chef Awards Ceremony in Chicago on June 15.
Here are the nominees for Best Chef: Texas, in addition to Girling:
- Ope Amosu, ChopnBlok, Houston
- Evelyn Garcia and Henry Lu, Jun, Houston
- Scott Girling, Osteria Il Muro, Denton
- Gabe Padilla and Melissa Padilla, Cafe Piro, Socorro
- Finn Walter, The Nicolett, Lubbock
Girling’s restaurant Osteria Il Muro is a reservation-only Italian restaurant in Denton featuring a menu that changes daily, offering fine dining in a more casual setting. It’s famously hard to get into, but worth sitting on the waitlist for a last-minute cancellation, which makes going to Osteria Il Muro an occasion in itself.
Girling is one of the restaurant’s owners, as well as its head chef.
Another exclusive Italian restaurant with a frequently changing menu, Lucia calls Dallas’ Bishop Arts District home. The restaurant features cured meats, pastas and breads, as well as baked goods crafted by nominee Maggie Huff.
Here are the nominees for Outstanding Pastry Chef or Baker, in addition to Huff:
- Neale Asato, Asato Family Shop, Honolulu, Hawaii
- Susan Bae, Moon Rabbit, Washington, D.C.
- Tavel Bristol-Joseph, Nicosi, San Antonio
- Justine MacNeil, Fiore, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
PENNY KIMBLE can be reached at pkimble@dentonrc.com.
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