The dining scene in America is dynamic, and making a list of the best restaurants in the US is like calling for debates and raising eyebrows.
The awards season resets the conversation every June. Also, new shops open and some old favorites often close their doors.
In this article, I have written about 10 standout restaurants. I have chosen them for a genuinely distinctive dining experience rather than sheer size or fame.
However, I have also done my research and share data worth knowing if you are planning where to eat in the US this year.
So, you will find the newest James Beard Award winners, where the Michelin Guide’s three-star restaurants actually sit in 2026, and what diner behavior data says about how Americans are choosing restaurants right now.
The Best Restaurants In The US: At A Glance
Restaurant
Style
What Stands Out
Perilla LA
Korean-American
Wagyu tasting plates, Korean pancakes, cocktail pairings
Noodle In A Haystack
Japanese (ramen and chawanmushi)
Intimate room, seasonal tasting-style courses
Maty’s
Peruvian, internationally inflected
Diverse plates with an international touch
Molotov Kitchen + Cocktails
Contemporary American (Denver)
Carrying the torch for a beloved closed restaurant
Prik Hom
Thai
Tiny 12-seat spot off the tourist trail
Quarter Sheets
Pizza
Cult-favorite crust, long waits worth it.
La Diabla Pozole Y Mezcal
Mexican
Pozole, ceviche, and a mezcal-forward bar
In Bocca Al Lupo
Italian
Affordable, memorable pasta and mains
Yess
Chef-driven tasting (Los Angeles)
Menu changes with the season and the day’s catch
Ore Hill
Contemporary American
Eclectic menu anchored by a standout pizza
My Methodology: How These 10 Restaurants Were Selected
This is not a scientific ranking of every great restaurant in the country.
With tens of thousands of restaurants across the US, no list of ten could claim that.
Instead, I picked these ten as a cross-section of standout dining experiences that span multiple cities and cuisines.
Korean-influenced small plates in Los Angeles, Peruvian cooking, Thai food well off the tourist track, and a Denver cocktail bar carrying the torch for a beloved restaurant that closed after years in business!
I weighed a combination of factors.
Sustained positive guest feedback across public review platforms
Distinctiveness of concept or cuisine (several of these are chef-driven spots with rotating, seasonal menus rather than fixed offerings)
A deliberate effort not to cluster every pick in one or two cities.
I also favored restaurants where the overall dining experience, including service, atmosphere, and presentation, came up alongside the food itself, since hospitality is as much a part of “best” as any single dish.
Editorial Note In The Interest Of Transparency
I have rewritten the guest reviews as paraphrased descriptions of general sentiment rather than direct quotes.
This list will keep evolving. If a restaurant closes, changes hands, or gets replaced by a comparable concept, I will update the entry rather than leave outdated information standing.
The State Of American Fine Dining In 2026: What The Data Actually Shows
Beyond personal picks, three sources give a clearer, evidence-based read on where American dining stands right now.
The James Beard Awards, the Michelin Guide, and diner behavior data from booking platforms like OpenTable.
2026 James Beard Award Winners: The National Categories
Category
Winner
Location
Outstanding Restaurant
Kalaya
Philadelphia, PA
Best New Restaurant
Lei
New York, NY
Outstanding Chef
Michael Tusk, Quince
San Francisco, CA
Outstanding Restaurateur
Dana Street (Fore Street, Scales and others)
Portland, ME
The James Beard Foundation is often called the restaurant industry’s version of the Oscars.
It announced its 2026 winners at Chicago’s Lyric Opera this past June, honoring 13 national categories plus regional Best Chef awards across 12 areas of the country.
Kalaya, a southern Thai restaurant, took the top Outstanding Restaurant honor, while Lei, a wine bar in New York’s Chinatown, won Best New Restaurant.
Michael Tusk of San Francisco’s Quince was named Outstanding Chef, and Dana Street, who owns several restaurants in Portland, Maine, took home Outstanding Restaurateur. (Source: James Beard Foundation / CNN, June 2026.)
Michelin Guide 2026: Where America’s Three-Star Restaurants Actually Are
The Michelin Guide’s US footprint keeps expanding.
However, three-star restaurants, with its highest rating, reserved for cuisine “worth a special journey,” remain rare.
As of the 2026 Guide, only 16 restaurants nationwide hold three stars, spread across just three states: New York, California, and Illinois.
State
Approx. Share Of US 3-Star Restaurants
2026 Newcomers
California
10 of 16 and more than the rest of the country combined
Californios (San Francisco), Enclos (Sonoma)
New York
Holds more 3-star restaurants than any single other US city
—
Illinois
Remaining share, based in Chicago
—
California alone accounts for 10 of the 16, after two more restaurants were promoted to three stars in 2026.
Californios in San Francisco, which became the first Mexican restaurant in the world to earn Michelin’s top rating, and Enclos in Sonoma.
The rating is not purely additive, either.
Both Alinea in Chicago and The Inn at Little Washington in Virginia lost their third star in the most recent round of reviews, a reminder that Michelin’s rating tracks current performance rather than reputation. (Source: Michelin Guide 2026 / Robb Report, June 2026.)
How Diners Are Actually Choosing Restaurants Right Now
It is not just critics driving the conversation.
OpenTable’s 2026 diner research, based on a survey of 1,500 US residents alongside dining data from its own platform, found that 61% of Americans have chosen a travel destination specifically because of its food or restaurant scene.
Also, 48% say they spend more time researching where to eat and drink than any other part of a trip.
Hotel restaurants in particular are having a moment.
Hotel restaurant dining on OpenTable was up 13% year-over-year as of mid-2026, prompting the platform to release a dedicated Top 100 Hotel Restaurants in America list.
It was generated from more than 10 million verified diner reviews collected between May 2025 and April 2026. (Source: OpenTable, July 2026.)
The 10 Restaurants
Finally, here are the names of the 10 best restaurants in the US I have picked for you.
Perilla LA
Excellent food, atmosphere, and service define the experience here.
Guest feedback consistently highlights the Korean pancake, a Wagyu tasting plate, and the grilled eggplant as a standout dish, with cocktails thoughtfully paired to the meal by attentive waitstaff.
Noodle In A Haystack
Diners consistently rave about the chawanmushi and ramen, describing an intimate room with great music and promptly paced courses.
The kitchen and front-of-house team are inviting and genuine.
It is a kind of place that earns repeat visits.
Maty’s
Maty’s is a well-located Peruvian restaurant serving diverse plates with an international touch.
Guests describe the food as excellent and the service attentive.
So, it is a solid pick for a night out with friends or family.
Molotov Kitchen + Cocktails
It has exceptional food, a warm ambiance, and genuinely lovely service.
Many diners who missed the long-running restaurant that previously occupied the space say Molotov is carrying the torch as one of the few truly good places to dine in Denver.
Prik Hom
A tiny restaurant off the usual tourist trail, seating around a dozen people, Prik Hom impresses with its variety.
Its menu punches well above the size of the room.
The salty stir-fried pork and the fried rice come up again and again in guest feedback, made to order and worth the wait.
Quarter Sheets
This pizza spot lives up to the hype.
The wait can run long, but the Bianca pie and a crust described as perfectly salty and crispy keep people coming back.
La Diabla Pozole Y Mezcal
From the pozole to the ceviche, guacamole, tacos, and margaritas, diners describe the food as excellent across the board, backed by fast, friendly service and reasonable prices.
In Bocca Al Lupo
Guests describe the food as delicious and beautifully presented, in a genuinely pleasant atmosphere.
Some have returned multiple times within a single trip. Prices are considered affordable for the quality across mains, dessert, and drinks.
Yess
Often called one of LA’s most underrated restaurants, Yess is led by a chef whose menu shifts with the seasons and the week’s catch.
It gives repeat visitors a genuinely different experience each time they sit down.
Ore Hill
It is a unique restaurant with a varied menu and something for everyone, including a well-regarded pizza.
It has a great location, a pleasant outdoor atmosphere, and consistently friendly staff.
So, where are you planning to dine in the US now?
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Abdul Aziz Mondol is a professional blogger who is having a colossal interest in writing blogs and other jones of calligraphies. In terms of his professional commitments, he loves to share content related to business, finance, technology, and the gaming niche.
According to a report, two of the most popular locations for tourists who want to spend their holidays in a tropical paradise are the Maldives and Bora Bora.
Located on the Indian Ocean, they are now synonymous with clean azure water, pristine white beaches, and refreshing greenery. The islands, however, are very different from each other in that what the visitors can expect from the two places.
The main differences between the locations are weather, accessibility, resorts, beaches, and activities.
The islands cannot be chosen between them as there is no right answer. Both the islands are absolute treasures and have rightly taken their spots in the top 10 globally.
Maldives
Best visited in the dead of winter, this island is a drop of paradise on Earth. Featuring a 26-atoll chain of islands with white powdery beaches and turquoise waters, this chain of islands is the envy of all the islands of the world. The signature overwater bungalow resorts of Maldives make the experience even more surreal.
Bora Bora
This island is not just sun, sea, and beaches. Bora Bora is a major activity ground that includes 4x4 safaris and natural underwater parks that offer a look at the magnificent corals and fish. You can witness shark feedings and enjoy boat rides around the turquoise lagoon. There is also the 2,300-foot Mount Otemanu, from where the entire island is up for view from the top.
Some of the other places that have secured the top spots are:
Niagara Falls
Consisting of the magnificent waterfalls that line the border of New York and Ontario. The Horseshoe Falls that stand at a height of 164 ft. is on the side of Canada. The Bridal Veil Falls and the American Falls are located on the North American side.
Mona Lisa In Paris
This half-length painting created by the Italian artist Leonardo da Vinci has managed to retain its immense fandom thanks to its rich and fascinating history. Kept in the Louvre Museum since 1797, people line up to have a glance at the famous painting that has become an icon of simplicity in art.
The Statue Of Liberty, the Northern Lights, the Stone Henge, the Taj Mahal, the Times Square, and the Burj Khalifa have locked in on the other top 10 marks.
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The Italian railway FS will launch the new night train next month from Rome to the capital city of the Dolomites Cortina named d'Ampezzo. Launching this new train in the next month seems like a “much-awaited service which aims to attract more numbers of tourists.”
This means this luxury hotel-like train will operate every weekend between 15th December 2023 and 25th February 2024, along with some additional runs at the time of Christmas.
This Italian state-owned company FS group formed a dedicated group aimed at tourism called FS Treni Turistic Italian. This takes overnight to reach the Dolomites destination, which will depart from Rome Termini at 9:40 P.M.
This train company will also work on additional connections, like on the Ionian road from Taranto to Reggio Calabria through Crotone and Catanzaro. This Italian luxury train company FS group was built in the 1980s, along with modernized interiors and technological equipment. If you are wondering how to afford the best hotels in Rome then this luxury hotel like train would be the most suitable.
The fleet of this FS group train will also be made up of over 500 trains from the FS Italian Foundation. The staff of this train is made up of 275 members. This luxury hotel-like train features single or double-sleeping tiers, including dinner and breakfast service on the ticket. Actually, the train by Rome is one of the most time saving at an affordable cost. That is why you will get a lot of time for the best things to do in Rome.
This on-boarding train car also serves products that are made in Italy, and this includes the bar service as well. This Italian FS group has actively participated in the country's progress for over 100 years. One of the main objectives of this FS business group has always been safe, efficient, and comfortable in terms of transporting millions of people.
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Officials have issued a statement that Thailand is bent on restoring the confidence of tourists in the tourism sector. The statement follows closely on the heels of a mass shooting at a luxury mall.
Two foreigners have been killed, and it has made hopes of attracting overseas visitors a distant dream.
On Tuesday, the police arrested a 14-year-old boy suspected of having unleashed a barrage of gunfire at the Siam Paragon Mall.
The location being the center of Bangkok’s commercial zone has raised all too many eyebrows. The incident caused the death of two women- one of them from China and the other from Myanmar, injuring five people.
Governor of the Tourism Authority of Thailand, Thapanee Kiatphaibool, has said that the agencies have vowed to do their best to restore confidence. "We need to improve security in all areas for Thai and foreign tourists," she said without explaining any necessary steps being taken.
Somsong Sachaphimukh, Vice President of the Tourism Council of Thailand industry group, has remarked, "This will impact tourism confidence and will affect our reputation.
In the past, there were complaints about safety from China but this was something unthinkable."
Chinese tourists have accounted for 11 million of the 39.9 million foreign visitors in Thailand in 2019.
Tourism so far has been pretty slow, and it has prompted the government to decide on the visa waiver ahead of the peak season.
Thai Examiner issued a report on the fee situation so far. The visa waiver will be collected from foreign travelers to provide “emergency medical health insurance cover and other benefits for 30 days from the point of entry.”
The report explained that the fee needs “to be paid on arrival at kiosks at Immigration Bureau points of entry, including at airports after landing.
The fee will also be delivered via a website or smartphone app.” It further added that “The tourism fee is supported broadly by the tourism industry as its tourist insurance fund is considered an essential step forward given the repeated stories of tragedies, accidents, and personal disasters which occur every year.”
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