Orlando's Kaya named a 2024 James Beard Award Finalist for Best New Restaurant

The James Beard Foundation has announced the 2024 Restaurant and Chef Award nominees, with one Orlando restaurant named a national finalist in the Best New Restaurant category.

Exciting news as Filipino casual fine dining restaurant Kaya, which opened in early 2023 at 618 N Thornton Ave in Orlando’s Mills50 district has been named a 2024 James Beard Award Finalist for Best New Restaurant.

Following last year's success for Henry Moso who became Orlando's first James Beard Award finalist for Best Chef: South, the city can now boast its first James Beard Award finalist in a national category.

Chef Lordfer Lalicon and Jamilyn Salonga Bailey are the names behind Kaya, which means capable in Filipino.

In welcoming the news, the duo commented on their Instagram account, "Big News! We are finalists for James Beard Awards best new restaurant! We are overjoyed and overflowing with gratitude for this huge honor we get to share with our team, families and our community. let's go, Orlando! Filipino food forever!!

Now that the semi-finalists have been revealed, judges and subcommittee members from James Beard Foundation will now dine at each finalists restaurants, before voting for their favorite.

Kaya will be up against nine other restaurants:

• Bar Bacetto, Waitsburg, WA

• Barbs-B-Q, Lockhart, TX

• Chez Noir, Carmel-by-the-Sea, CA

• Comfort Kitchen, Dorchester, MA

• Dakar NOLA, New Orleans, LA

• Hayward, McMinnville, OR

• Kisser, Nashville, TN

• Oro by Nixta, Minneapolis, MN

• Shan, Bozeman, MT

Winners will be celebrated at the James Beard Restaurant and Chef Awards ceremony on Monday, June 10, 2024 at the Lyric Opera of Chicago.

Visit jamesbeard.org for more details.

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