The James Beard Foundation dropped its 2026 Restaurant and Chef Award finalists on March 31. And South Carolina showed up.
Three of the state's 11 semifinalists advanced. Two of them are right here in Charleston. The third is in Greenville, and if you haven't heard of Scoundrel yet, you're about to.
The Charleston pair
Merci earned a spot in the Best New Restaurant category — one of just 10 restaurants in the entire country to make that list. If you've been to the tiny Harleston Village spot, you already know why. Housed in a Federal-style building that's been standing for 200 years, Michael and Courtney Zenter have built something that feels genuinely European without trying too hard about it. Fresh pastas. Elegant crudos. A beef Wellington that people are apparently rearranging their Wednesdays for.
"We are honored to be recognized and grateful to our team and Charleston community for embracing our vision," the Zenters told the Post & Courier. "It's been an incredible first year bringing Merci to life."
It opened last March. It's already a James Beard finalist. That's not a slow burn — that's a rocket.
Then there's Weltons Tiny Bakeshop, which snagged a spot in the Outstanding Bakery category. Five spots. Nationwide. Weltons got one of them.
Anyone who's stood in that line snaking down Upper King — holding out for a tomato pie danish or a dark chocolate croissant — already knew this was special. Hannah and Zachary Welton built a scratch bakery rooted in local ingredients and what sounds like a very well-documented travel diary. The olive oil cake alone could make the argument.
And then there's Greenville
Joe Cash, chef and owner of Scoundrel on Main Street in downtown Greenville, is a Best Chef: Southeast finalist. He's up against four others across the Carolinas, Georgia, Kentucky, Tennessee, and West Virginia.
His credentials are not subtle. He cooked at Per Se in New York. He ran the kitchen at The Pool under Major Food Group. Then he came home to Greenville in 2021, opened a French bistro, and last November earned a Michelin star — one of only three in the state and 19 in the entire South.
Scoundrel is upscale without the attitude. That's apparently Cash's whole point. The Greenville kid who went to New York and came back to prove something.
What happens next
Judges will visit the finalists, taste food, and vote. Winners are announced June 15 at the Lyric Opera of Chicago.
South Carolina's last Beard win came in 2024, when Columbia's Lula Drake Wine Parlour made history as that city's first-ever James Beard winner.
Three finalists. Two cities. One state that's quietly becoming one of the best food destinations in the country.
It's worth paying attention to.
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