Final evening on the Wynn Las Vegas, the 50 Greatest group — the group behind the World’s 50 Greatest Eating places listing — unveiled a brand new rating, the North America’s 50 Greatest Eating places, to a roaring crowd of lots of of cooks, homeowners, journalists (together with yours actually and Eater viewers editor Kat Thompson), and different meals fanatics.
The occasion marked the primary time North America acquired its personal listing — although by the group’s definition, North America contains the US, Canada, and the Caribbean, however not Mexico or Central America, that are a part of the Latin America’s 50 Greatest Eating places listing. New York Metropolis Korean American tasting menu restaurant Atomix was positioned on the high, receiving the very best variety of weighted votes from 300 voters throughout the area (who every rank their high eight eating places). Montreal wine bar Vin Mon Lapin positioned second and Ontario’s Restaurant Pearl Morissette positioned third.
There are already loads of restaurant lists and awards like this. Internationally, the World’s 50 Greatest goes toe-to-toe with Michelin guides (which don’t rank eating places and award stars to a choose few). Domestically, the James Beard Award Basis, Bon Appétit, Esquire, the Los Angeles Occasions, the New York Occasions, and loads of different organizations try and make their mark with annual finest lists or awards. Eater has been doing 38 Important Eating places maps for nearly 20 years, and the staff just lately issued its 20-year anniversary version of All-Time 38 Important Eating places, together with locations which have since closed.
However a couple of issues make the brand new North America’s 50 Greatest listing stand out.
William Drew, 50 Greatest content material chief, defined firstly of the present that voters got no standards for his or her selections, which opened the door to informal eating places like Los Angeles meals corridor spot Holbox, New York seafood counter Penny, and Washington D.C.’s trendy Vietnamese specialist Moon Rabbit. Certain, an excellent portion of eating places on the listing serve expensive tasting menus, like New York’s Le Bernardin, Aska, Jungsik, and Saga, or Los Angeles’s Kato and Windfall. However Denver’s Alma Fonda Fina, Portland’s Kann, and Philadelphia’s Kalaya all function fairly priced a la carte menus. That instantly distinguishes the North America listing from the extra aspirational tiers of Michelin’s star system (although Michelin does additionally function extra inexpensive Bib Gourmands) and even 50 Greatest’s personal worldwide listing, which additionally leans towards the very best finish of advantageous eating.
The brand new North America listing additionally gives extra room for American advantageous eating. New York’s Eleven Madison Park was the final American restaurant to high the World’s 50 Greatest listing again in 2017. In recent times, U.S. eating places have been sidelined to some extent in favor of expertise from world wide. The 2025 version of the World’s 50 Greatest solely had one U.S. restaurant, Atomix (although the again 50 included one other 4 spots).
50 Greatest’s regional lists, like people who have existed in Asia, Latin America, and the Center East/North Africa, basically act as minor leagues, highlighting up-and-comers and feeding straight into the World’s 50 Greatest. Now that North America has its personal listing, extra native eating places might land on the granddaddy listing. At a time when it looks as if American excellence on the worldwide stage is waning in areas from enterprise to expertise to geopolitics, the U.S. can now flaunt a little bit of culinary pleasure.
A part of that American excellence is our variety. As in comparison with 50 Greatest’s different regional rankings, which are inclined to function the native cuisines of member nations, it’s additionally hanging how culinarily diverse North America’s listing is. Senegalese tasting menu Dakar from New Orleans and Dōgon in Washington D.C. spotlight West African cooking; New York’s Corima, San Francisco’s Californios, and Toronto’s Quetzal level to Mexico; Albi attracts its flavors from Palestine; Baan Lao in Richmond, Canada, serves meals from Laos; Kato presents meals from Taiwan; Chicago’s Kasama from the Philippines; Kalaya from Thailand; Atomix from Korea; and Moon Rabbit from Vietnam. If there’s a standard theme amongst North America’s 50 Greatest Eating places, it’s that many are grounded in immigrant cuisines.
And naturally that is simply the beginning. The status of this regional listing will change into an attractive proposition for eating places reaching for nationwide and worldwide recognition within the years to come back. The voting physique, which is able to change by 25 % yearly, will proceed roaming round looking for the subsequent Atomix. (Although a full third of voters are cooks and restaurant homeowners, a system that Drew mentioned “works for them” however does elevate questions of allegiances and vote-trading.) Maybe the Canadians will proceed to point out their power, or future editions might embrace extra illustration from the Caribbean, which landed simply two spots towards the again of the listing.
At a time when recognition is available in so many types — influencer spotlights, movie star name-checks, meals media lists — most eating places and cooks admire all of it. However at the same time as somebody who has helped produce lots of of restaurant best-of lists, not all of them are created equal. North America’s 50 Greatest Eating places will doubtless change into a brand new aspiration for American, Canadian, and Caribbean eating places, and the collective effort from cooks, servers, bussers, bartenders, sommeliers, and operators will solely imply higher excellence — and higher experiences for diners. As a eating fanatic, I’m excited to make use of this listing to return to the locations I’ve visited and discover so many who I haven’t tried.
- A Canadian dozen: Earlier than the occasion, there was numerous chatter about Canada comprising the lion’s share of the listing. Our associates up north garnered 12 spots, together with three of the highest 5, which felt like a coup. The Canadian voting contingent targeted on Japanese Canada, with Tanière³, Vin Mon Lapin, and Restaurant Pearl Morissette placing Quebec and Ontario on the map.
- And a baker’s dozen for New York: New York Metropolis had simply probably the most winners of any area or metropolis. The Massive Apple ought to simply be known as the Massive Restaurant. Atomix landed No. 1, whereas French-ish eating places Le Bernardin and Le Veau d’Or cracked the highest 10.
- Three informal spots: New York additionally had probably the most non-tasting menus in a single metropolis, with the 4 Horsemen, By way of Carota, and Penny. Whereas decidedly upscale, Cafe Carmellini can be one of many solely eating places on the listing to serve breakfast and weekday lunch.
- One large 12 months: Los Angeles earned three spots, however Windfall chef Michael Cimarusti (who missed the occasion as a consequence of sickness) was awarded the Chef’s Selection award by his friends. The award marks Windfall’s finest 12 months ever after it acquired a 3rd Michelin star.
- Pac 10: The state of California had 10 spots, largely advantageous eating tasting menus in Northern California.
- Two completely different twos: New Orleans had two spots, an enormous endorsement for the restaurant-heavy metropolis. Chicago additionally had two spots, which felt surprisingly low for its enormous restaurant scene.
- And a few three-peats: Washington D.C. and Philadelphia every had three winners, the identical quantity as Los Angeles. Usually, the East Coast simply beat out the West Coast.
- 11 eating places serving Asian cuisines: Collectively they highlighted the huge affect of East and Southeast Asian immigrants on the continent. Three eating places — Atomix, Jungsik, and Benu — type a triumvirate of high-end Korean tasting menus within the U.S., including to the general Korean affect. I believe they may enter the cultural lexicon alongside Blackpink, Culinary Class Wars, KPop Demon Hunters, and Ok-beauty.
- Six eating places with Black homeowners or cooks: Spots like Dakar NOLA and Dōgon particularly mirror the culinary influences of the African diaspora on North America.
- Six eating places serving Mexican delicacies: Although eating places in Mexico weren’t on the North America listing, Mexican delicacies was. Apart from French, it was the preferred delicacies on the listing, together with two spots in Canada.
Eater’s protection of the North America’s 50 Greatest Eating places occasion was produced with help from 50 Greatest and the Wynn Las Vegas. All editorial content material is produced independently of these organizations. Learn extra about Eater’s ethics insurance policies right here.