Columbus bakery named semifinalist for prestigious James Beard Awards for second straight year

For more than a decade, Dan the Baker has served up some of the city’s best bread and baked goods from his Grandview-area “Toast Bar,” and now for the second straight year it’s receiving national recognition.

This morning, Dan the Baker was announced as a 2026 semifinalist for Outstanding Bakery. The concept was a semifinalist for Outstanding Bakery in last year’s James Beard Awards.

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The bakery is the only Columbus chef or restaurant tapped as a James Beard semifinalist this year. Last year, Dan the Baker joined Avishar Barua (for Best Chef: Great Lakes) and Law Bird (for Outstanding Bar).

Dan the Baker is located at 1042 Ridge St. Owner Dan Riesenberger originally opened the storefront in 2013, and it continues to operate more than a decade later, offering speciality bread, croissants, buns, cookies and more.

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