Neale Asato, David Standridge finalists

Neale Asato and David Standridge are arriving at the 2026 James Beard Awards from very different places in the restaurant world. Asato is a first-time national finalist from Honolulu; Standridge is already a James Beard winner in Mystic, Connecticut. (hawaiipublicradio.org) (jamesbeard.org) Asato was named one of five nominees for Outstanding Pastry Chef or Baker on March 31, representing Asato Family Shop in Honolulu. Hawaiʻi Public Radio reported he was the only Hawaiʻi contender to advance from nine local semifinalists to the 2026 finalist round. (jamesbeard.org) (hawaiipublicradio.org 1) (hawaiipublicradio.org 2) Standridge’s current story is less about a new nomination than about the chef behind Shipwright’s Daughter after his 2024 win for Best Chef: Northeast. The restaurant and the James Beard Foundation both describe him as a leader in sustainable seafood cooking rooted in Mystic and coastal New England. (shipwrightsdaughter.com) (jamesbeard.org) That split explains why the two profiles landed together this week. One spotlights a finalist still chasing a first Beard medal in 2026; the other revisits a chef whose Beard win has already become part of Shipwright’s Daughter’s identity. (hawaiipublicradio.org) (shipwrightsdaughter.com) Asato’s profile centers on a family sherbet business that has expanded into Asatos Waikīkī, an omakase dessert bar opened this year. Honolulu Magazine reported that expansion as Asato moved into the 2026 finals. (honolulumagazine.com) (jamesbeard.org) Standridge’s work at Shipwright’s Daughter has been tied to local kelp, bycatch fish, and invasive species, all part of a menu built around lower-waste sourcing. The restaurant’s April 26 kelp dinner with Stonington Kelp Company put that approach on display again this month. (shipwrightsdaughter.com 1) (shipwrightsdaughter.com 2) The calendar is now fixed. The James Beard Foundation says the 2026 Restaurant and Chef Awards will be held on Monday, June 15, at the Lyric Opera of Chicago, after semifinalists were announced January 21 and nominees on March 31. (jamesbeard.org 1) (jamesbeard.org 2) For Asato, that night will decide whether Hawaiʻi’s only remaining finalist turns a family dessert business into a national winner. For Standridge, it is another season in which Shipwright’s Daughter enters the Beard conversation with a title it already owns. (hawaiipublicradio.org) (shipwrightsdaughter.com)