Anjin named Beard finalist

Kansas City restaurant Anjin is a finalist for the 2026 James Beard Award for Best New Restaurant. (kcur.org) The James Beard Foundation announced the finalists on March 31, and winners are scheduled to be named on June 15 at the Lyric Opera of Chicago. Anjin opened in July 2025. (jamesbeard.org) (kcur.org) Anjin is a 20-seat Japanese-style pub, or izakaya, at 1708 Oak Street in the Crossroads district. Chef Nick Goellner and sommelier Leslie Newsam Goellner built it around a bar facing an open kitchen. (kcur.org) (anjinkc.com) The restaurant’s menu centers on small plates, rotating yakitori skewers, sake, shochu and Japanese beer. KCUR reported popular dishes include a fried sakura pork collar sandwich, pickled mackerel and soft-serve ice cream in flavors such as black sesame or strawberry. (anjinkc.com) (kcur.org 1) (kcur.org 2) Nick and Leslie Newsam Goellner told KCUR they did not want to open a place focused only on sushi or ramen. They said the goal was to show Kansas City diners a broader range of Japanese cooking and to push local palates toward more adventurous ordering. (kcur.org) KCUR located the restaurant on the south-side corner near 17th Street and Oak Street, close to the old Kansas City Star building. Reservations are tight enough that Nick Goellner said the most available times are usually around 5:30 p.m. or after 9 p.m. (kcur.org) The nomination also extends a track record for the couple in Kansas City dining. Their other restaurant, The Antler Room, has drawn prior James Beard Foundation recognition, and Nick Goellner has previously been a semifinalist for Best Chef: Midwest. (kcur.org) Leslie Newsam Goellner told KCUR this nomination felt more like a team award than earlier honors because Best New Restaurant is a national category. If Anjin wins in June, the small Oak Street dining room will become one of the year’s most visible restaurant stories in the country. (kcur.org)