The list of semifinalists for the 2025 James Beard Chef and Restaurant Awards, which commemorate the work of chefs, restauranteurs, hospitality workers and, starting this year, honors outstanding bars and cocktail lounges, included the names of eight Wisconsin chefs.
Among those is Gregory León, who was recognized as a semifinalist for Outstanding Chef, a category that considers individuals from across the entire country.
Other Milwaukeeans such as Ross Bachhuber and Samuel Ek at Odd Duck in Walker’s point, Kyle Knall of Birch on the East Side and Dan Jacobs and Dan Van Rite from EsterEv in Bayview earned spots as semifinalists for Best Chef: Midwest. That category includes twenty chefs across eight states: Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wisconsin.
For León, this is his fourth year in a row being nominated for a James Beard Award. He was a finalist for Best Chef: Midwest in 2022 and 2023, and a semifinalist for Outstanding Chef in 2024.
Despite being nominated for the same category last year, León said he was still not expecting it.
“I went to bed last night knowing that the nominations were going to come out, and I had already prepared myself like, ‘if it doesn’t happen, it’s okay,’ and I was definitely hearing that imposter syndrome voice, so it was a nice surprise to wake up to,” León said.
León, who grew up between Venezuela and Oklahoma, started cooking in professional kitchens in San Francisco. He moved there with only $700 and lied on his resume to get his first job.
León moved to Milwaukee in 2015 to open a restaurant he could call his home. Now, his restaurant is in its tenth year, and he said he is grateful to his guests who have allowed him to be successful while doing what he loves.
“When I started working on Amilinda, I just wanted a place where I could work and cook, make a little bit of money, make a living, and it turned into something much more than that. It’s an honor to have a space that is really important to our guests,” León said.
León also said, most of all, he is grateful to his staff for making this all happen.
“This award is not only a reflection on me but also reflection on them,” León said.
Alexander Sherwin, a host at Amilinda, had kind words to share about working with León, who Sherwin is proud to see recognized for his success in the kitchen.
“The Gregory León that I know is an incredibly caring and thoughtful individual, he is also very focused, which comes with years of experience working in a kitchen, but behind a kind of grumbly appearance is a really warm and caring individual. And you can really taste it in his cooking. It’s warm, it’s inviting,” Sherwin said.
Sherwin also said that while León shines in the kitchen, he also succeeds in creating a welcoming environment in his restaurant through his interactions with guests.
“When issues arise or if people really like the food, Greg will find a lull in the tickets to come out and greet the tables and parties and such, which I think they really appreciate, being able to see the chef and see who is making the food,” Sherwin said.
Guests can expect more to come from León and Amilinda. This coming August, they will celebrate their tenth-year anniversary with dinners throughout the month. They also have multiple collaborations lined that will continue to be announced throughout the year.
The James Beard Foundation will announce finalists for the Chef and Restaurant Awards on April 2. Winners will be declared at the awards ceremony on June 16 at the Lyric Opera of Chicago.
This story was written by Joseph Schamber. He can be reached at [email protected].
