The James Beard Awards have released their 2025 finalists—and two Pittsburgh restaurants made the list. Fet-Fisk is up for Best New Restaurant, and Chad Houser of Café Momentum received the prestigious Humanitarian of the Year Award for his service in helping young people in the juvenile justice system find jobs in the culinary industry. The final ceremony will take place in June, so we’ll have to wait a few months for the actual winners, but this is an exciting step forward for Pittsburgh’s food scene, as most of its presence on the James Beard stage hovers around the semifinalist.
Chad Houser of Café Momentum: Humanitarian of the Year Achievement Award
Of the award, Café Momentum wrote on Instagram that “This award belongs to every intern who has walked through our restaurant doors, every team member who pours into our youth, every partner who has stood beside us and every supporter who believes in what’s possible. From Dallas to Atlanta, Pittsburgh, Denver and beyond, this community is proof of what happens when young people are given the opportunity to reach their full potential.”
Café Momentum has locations around the country, but its Pittsburgh location opened in 2023 under Houser’s direction. Pittsburgh natives Cheyenne Tyler and Lamar Davis run the kitchen on Forbes Avenue downtown, where people of all stripes can enjoy delicious food and help support positive career growth for youth in the juvenile justice system.
Fet-Fisk: Finalist for Best New Restaurant
The Best New Restaurant list narrows to only 9 restaurants as we inch towards the final ceremony, so making the cut is a big deal. Fet-Fisk is certainly a buzzy restaurant already, with accolades from Eater and the New York Times. The restaurant is full every night of the week, and consistently changes up its menu to feature seasonal produce and create innovative takes on every dish they feature. Forsberg called the restaurant “approachable fine dining,” and it lives up to that description.
Their social media announcement of the award comes right after a tongue-in-cheek April Fools’ post in which they pretended they were doing brunch service as something of an in-joke about how much brunch is universally hated by service industry workers. But people love the restaurant so much that many took it completely seriously—a testament to what a big following they have. Fet-Fisk’s James Beard Award finalist nomination, however, is no April Fool’s joke. Chef Nik Forsberg and his staff have been semifinalists before, but this marks their first time on the finalist list. Will they receive the final accolade for Best New Restaurant? We’ll have to wait until Chicago in June to see.
Story by Emma Riva
Photo by Sarah Laponte
Subscribe to TABLE Magazine’s print edition.
