Lexington County restaurants received nominations for the awards that are considered the Oscars of the dining world.

Kitwanda “Kiki” Cyrus and Tyrone Cyrus, who operate locations of the soul food restaurant Kiki’s Chicken and Waffles in the Harbison area and in northeast Columbia, and Robbie Robinson, the former food truck barbecue wizard of City Limits Q who opened a West Columbia brick-and-mortar to serve his acclaimed smoked meats last year, have been announced as semi-finalists for the James Beard Award for Best Chef: Southeast, an honor that goes annually to a standout chef from Georgia, Kentucky, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee or West Virginia.

The James Beard Foundation has been giving out the annual honors each year since 1990, with the awards’ stated mission being to “celebrate, support, and elevate the people behind America’s food culture and champion a standard of good food anchored in talent, equity, and sustainability.”

No restaurant in the Columbia area had advanced to the next phase of the contest, when the semi-finalists get narrowed down to finalists, until last year, when Columbia’s City Grit Hospitality Group was nominated for Outstanding Restaurateur and Columbia’s Lula Drake Wine Parlour was nominated for Outstanding Hospitality.

Lula Drake, located on Columba’s Main Street, is a semi-finalist for a second-straight year, this time nominated for Outstanding Wine and Other Beverages Program.

In addition to City Grit and Lula Drake, the Columbia area had one other semi-finalist last year, with Spotted Salamander's Jessica Shillato receiving a nod for Best Chef: Southeast.

“Having not one but three James Beard semifinalists for a second year in a row speaks to the strength of our region’s culinary talent and offerings," Experience Columbia SC President and CEO Bill Ellen is quoted in a release. “This prestigious recognition is expanding to new semifinalists as well as continuing appreciation for a previous nominee. We could not be prouder or more excited to have caught and kept the attention of the James Beard Foundation and we are optimistic that this is only the beginning of a long line of nominations and, hopefully, wins still to come."

Finalists are set to be revealed April 30, with the James Beard Restaurant and Chef Awards Ceremony scheduled to take place June 10 at the Lyric Opera of Chicago. The complete list of semi-finalists is available here.