Lagasse's son is a Beard finalist

E.J. Lagasse, the chef and co-owner of Emeril’s in New Orleans, is a finalist for the 2026 James Beard Award for Emerging Chef. (jamesbeard.org) The James Beard Foundation announced the finalists on March 31, 2026, and listed Lagasse alongside Fátima Juárez of Komal in Los Angeles, Rasheeda Purdie of Ramen by Ra in New York, Bailey Sullivan of Monteverde Restaurant & Pastificio in Chicago, and Adrian Torres of Maximo in West University Place, Texas. Winners are scheduled to be named June 15 at the Lyric Opera of Chicago. (jamesbeard.org) Lagasse is the son of Emeril Lagasse, but his nomination is tied to his own role running the day-to-day kitchen at Emeril’s. The restaurant group says he returned to New Orleans in 2022 to take the helm as chef and co-owner after training at Café Boulud, Le Bernardin, Core by Clare Smyth, and Frantzén. (emeril.org) Emerging Chef is one of the national restaurant and chef categories in the Beard Awards, which the foundation describes as a top honor in the United States restaurant industry. The 2026 nominees were released as the foundation marked nearly four decades of the awards. (jamesbeard.org) Lagasse’s finalist spot follows a fast run of national recognition for Emeril’s. The Michelin Guide said in November 2025 that he was 22 years old, had helped earn two Michelin stars for the restaurant, and had also received the 2025 Michelin Guide American South Young Chef Award. (guide.michelin.com) His résumé is unusually compressed for a chef now competing in a national awards field. Emeril’s says he started working at Meril in New Orleans at 13, later attended Johnson & Wales, and spent nearly two years training under Eric Ripert at Le Bernardin in New York City. (emeril.org) The family name still shapes how the story is being told, especially in southeastern New England. The Herald News framed the nomination through Lagasse’s Portuguese-American roots and his family ties to Fall River, Massachusetts, where Emeril Lagasse’s background has long been part of local pride. (heraldnews.com) That regional angle has sharpened this year because another Lagasse project tied directly to Portuguese food recently closed. The Herald News reported in January that 34 Restaurant in New Orleans, a collaboration between Emeril and E.J. Lagasse inspired by Portuguese cuisine, shut down on January 31, 2026. (heraldnews.com) The next marker is June 15 in Chicago, when Lagasse will learn whether his latest nomination becomes his first James Beard win. (jamesbeard.org)