A Japanese-style pub in Kansas City is a finalist for the James Beard Foundation’s 2026 Best New Restaurant award.
Anjin, created by chef and owner Nick Goellner and his sommelier wife, Leslie Newsam Goellner, was inspired by the lively spirit of Japanese izakayas, casual drinking establishments in Japan where handcrafted dishes are served in an intimate setting. The restaurant opened in July 2025.
“I couldn't feel more honored and more excited for all of us,” Newsam Goellner told KCUR after the announcement. “It feels like we actually have a little star.”
The couple also own The Antler Room restaurant, near Hospital Hill, which has been nominated in previous years by the James Beard Foundation.
“It just feels like the Midwest gets ignored a lot, so it's definitely really amazing,” Newsam Goellner said.
Newsam Goellner's 20-year career in hospitality was influenced by Room 39 in Kansas City, before she worked in New York, then San Francisco, according to the Antler Room website. Nick Goellner, a Kansas City native and French Culinary Institute graduate, is known for globally inspired, seasonal cooking, and has earned multiple James Beard semifinalist honors for Best Chef: Midwest.
“Nick has gotten three nominations for Antler Room,” Newsam Goellner said. “But this one is more impactful, not only because it's a national category, but because it feels like it's more of a team award and kind of shows the effort that, collectively, we've all put into it.”
A 20-seat bar anchors Anjin’s space in the Crossroads, at 1708 Oak St., which also features an open kitchen. The menu features sake flights, and small plates like a fried pork collar sandwich, pickled mackerel and a variety of skewers. Desert is a soft serve ice cream flavored with black sesame or strawberry.
"It's a very open space,” Newsam Goellner said. “That's definitely one of my favorite things, where you can see literally everything going on."
The intimate space is named after the Japanese word for "pilot" of ships according to the restaurant’s website. Anjin is a nod to Goellner’s grandfather, who married in Japan after World War II and passed down stories that sparked Goellner’s lifelong love of the culture.
"Nick and I actually went on our honeymoon to Japan — the first time in 2014 — and kind of started going every few years after that,” Newsam Goellner said. “So we really wanted this space to honor our love of Japan."
Drew Little, who Newsam Goellner said was a starting employee and bar manager at The Antler Room, also co-owns Anjin with the couple.
“He's definitely very front-facing,” Newsam Goellner said. “He still does a lot of bar things, but also does everything else in between."
A brief history of nominations for the metro
The James Beard Awards recognize excellence in the culinary and food media industries in the U.S., and celebrate chefs, restaurants, journalists and authors who shape American food culture.
Often called the “Oscars of the food world,” they highlight innovation, leadership and achievement across a wide range of categories.
Yoli Tortilleria earned a James Beard Award in 2023 for Outstanding Bakery — a historic win that made it the first tortilla-focused bakery ever recognized by the foundation.
Kansas City had seven nominations in 2025, although no restaurants or bars ended up making the shortlist of finalists.
Five Kansas City area restaurants and bars were named semifinalists for the 2026 James Beard Awards, and KCUR podcast producer Mackenzie Martin was nominated for the Foundation’s 2024 Media Award.
The James Beard Foundation announced this year’s finalists on Instagram on Wednesday morning. Winners will be named in Chicago in June.
Elsewhere in Missouri this year; Loryn Nalic of Balkan Treat Box, a Balkan street-food restaurant in Webster Grove, is nominated for Best Chef: Midwest; Louie, a pizza, pasta, and wine hangout in Clayton, is nominated for Outstanding Hospitality; and the vegetable-forward Vicia, in St. Louis, is nominated for Outstanding Restaurant.
