Las Vegas Wins Its First James Beard Best Chef Award in 15 Years

On June 15, 2026, Las Vegas was recognized with its first James Beard Foundation Best Chef award in almost two decades.

Casa Playa chef Sarah Thompson took home the 2026 James Beard Awards Best Chef: Southwest. It’s a massive win for the celebrated chef, her restaurant, and for the City of Las Vegas; the last time Las Vegas won in this category was when Saipin Chutima of Lotus of Siam won the same category in 2011. When accepting the award, Thompson said to the audience, “It’s been awhile since Vegas has been up here, and it’s great to be representing our city.”

Casa Playa debuted at the Encore Las Vegas in 2021, replacing the former Elio, which closed in 2020. Thompson was Elio’s chef de cuisine, and before that worked as an executive sous chef at New York’s Cosme under the Mexican-born chef Daniela Soto-Innes, who is the youngest chef to be named World’s Best Female Chef by the World’s 50 Best Restaurants.

At Casa Playa, Thompson debuted her own menu, while Wynn resort mixologist Mariena Mercer Boarini created cocktails and assistant general manager and agave expert Noah Arenstein curated the expansive mezcal and tequila collection. Her menu consists of grilled seafood found at hidden playacitas along the Mexican shoreline. Thompson calls her menu a “culinary adventure” in which she tries to balance creativity with tradition. Her approach includes playful takes on dishes such as a squash blossom quesadillas, Baja-style fried fish tacos, and a crudo of Mexican blue shrimp with young coconut, tomatillo, and cucumber. 

The James Beard Foundation Awards named Las Vegas’s classic steakhouse, Bob Taylor’s Ranch House, as one of the recipients for its 2026 America’s Classics awards. Bob Taylor opened Bob Taylor’s Ranch House in 1955 as the Ranch House Supper Club. Taylor sold the Ranch House Supper Club in the 1980s, when new owners renamed it. Today, the restaurant — widely recognized as the oldest restaurant in Las Vegas — still operates on the same plot of land, set away from the dazzling lights of the Strip, though urban creep has surrounded the once remote location.

Best Chef: Southwest

Sarah Thompson, Casa Playa, Las Vegas, Nevada

Disclosure: Some Vox Media staff members are part of the voting body for the James Beard Foundation Awards.