1 MD Restaurant Named 2025 James Beard Winner

BALTIMORE, MD — Charleston restaurant in Baltimore was honored at Monday’s James Beard Foundation Awards ceremony at the Lyric Opera in Chicago for Outstanding Wine and Other Beverages Program.

The awards, regarded as the Academy Awards of the U.S. restaurant industry, honor excellence across a range of categories, from fine dining to casual gems.

Charleston, located in the Harbor East neighborhood, has a 58-page wine and drink menu. Its most expensive bottles cost over $5,000. The venue is led by Chef Cindy Wolf, a nine-time James Beard Foundation Award Finalist for best Mid-Atlantic chef.

"Chef Wolf's cuisine is rooted in French fundamentals and the Low Country cooking of South Carolina, engaging both regional and international influence," Charleston's website said.

Chef Carlos Delgado at Causa | Amazonia in Washington, D.C., was named Best Chef in the Mid-Atlantic region.

2025 is the 35th anniversary of the prestigious culinary awards that recognize eateries and chefs who create exceptional food, food media content, and better food systems, according to the James Beard Foundation. Awards also recognize a demonstrated commitment to racial and gender equity, community, sustainability, and a culture where all can thrive.

This year in celebration of the pivotal anniversary, the 2025 Restaurant and Chef Awards were presented across 25 categories, with an expanded focus on beverages, introducing three new categories: Best New Bar, Outstanding Professional in Beverage Service, and Outstanding Professional in Cocktail Service.

Other categories include outstanding restaurateur, outstanding chef, outstanding restaurant, emerging chef, best new restaurant, outstanding bakery, outstanding pastry chef or baker, outstanding hospitality, outstanding wine and other beverages program, outstanding bar and best chef.

Several Maryland and DC restaurants and chefs were named semifinalists earlier this year:

Maryland nominees included:

Outstanding Professional in Cocktail Service: Dre Levon, Clavel, Baltimore

Best Chef: Mid-Atlantic: Michael Correll, Ruse, St. Michaels: Fernando Gonzalez, 2Fifty Barbeque, Riverdale, MD and Washington, DC; Jasmine Norton, The Urban Oyster, Baltimore

D.C. nominees include:

• Outstanding Restaurateur: Scott Drewno and Danny Lee from The Fried Rice Collective (Anju, Chiko, and I Egg You)
• Best New Restaurant: Mita
• Outstanding Pastry Chef or Baker: Susan Bae from Moon Rabbit
• Best Mid-Atlantic Chef: Henji Cheung from Queen's English

The James Beard Awards, first presented in 1991, recognize exceptional talent in the culinary and food media industries and are often regarded as the “Oscars of culinary arts.” They recognize a range of experiences, from fine-dining restaurants to casual gems, in 22 categories.

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