Tripadvisor Announces 2026 Travelers' Choice Awards: Best of the Best Restaurants, Showcasing the World's Top Eateries & Experiences

Discover the restaurants and experiences shaping the future of culinary travel with new experiential categories: Food Tours, Cooking Classes, Wine & Beer Tours, and the crowd-favorite Viral Right Now 

NEEDHAM, Mass., Sept. 15, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Tripadvisor, the world's leading travel platform, today announced the winners of its annual Travelers' Choice Awards: Best of the Best Restaurants for 2026.

Based on first-hand reviews and opinions submitted by a global community of millions of diners over the last year, winners rank among the top one percent of all listings on Tripadvisor, offering a trusted guide to unforgettable meals for travelers across the globe.

Categories for this year's awards include Fine Dining, Casual, Date Night, Hidden Gems, and Vegan & Vegetarian, as well as four new categories centered on food experiences. As travelers increasingly seek out immersive culinary experiences that bring destinations to life, this year's awards introduce Best of the Best Food Tours, Cooking Classes, Wine & Beer Tours, and a Viral Right Now category highlighting current top trending culinary sensations.

"Food is at the heart of how we experience a destination, and these awards recognize the restaurant and culinary experiences travelers consider among the very best," said Laurel Greatrix, Chief Communications Officer, Tripadvisor Group. "From cooking classes with locals to incredible food tours and restaurants, these are the kinds of experiences that can become a highlight of a trip — or even a reason to take one."

This year's awards bring together acclaimed culinary icons and local institutions across Tripadvisor's core restaurant categories. Fogón Asado in Buenos Aires claims the No. 1 spot in the world on the Fine Dining list for its intimate, interactive open fire asado tasting experience, while Ristorante Paoletti in Highlands, North Carolina, grabs the top title in the U.S. for its elevated Northern Italian cuisine and legendary wine cellar.

In Casual Dining, Parisian crowd-favorite Pizzeria Arrivederci earns the highest global honors, while coastal gem Hook & Barrel in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, ranks No. 1 in the U.S. (and No. 7 worldwide) for sustainable seafood and warm hospitality.

Expanding beyond traditional sit-down meals, this year's awards also spotlight the growing appetite for immersive, bookable culinary experiences and social-media-driven discoveries through four new experiential categories. Leading the global Food Tours list is the Reykjavik Food Walk in Iceland, offering travelers immersive tastings of local specialties, while Seattle's Chef Guided Food Tour of Pike Place Market secures the No. 1 spot in the U.S.

In Cooking Classes, the Rome Pasta and Tiramisu Class ranks No. 1 globally for turning travelers into authentic Italian home chefs, while the Cape Town Wine Tour (Paarl, Franschhoek & Stellenbosch) and Michigan's 5-Hour Traverse City Wine Tour claim top honors in Wine & Beer Tours for the World and U.S., respectively.

The new Viral Right Now list recognizes world-famous foodie sensations that have captured global social feeds, headlined by London's beloved Bombay-style eatery Dishoom and Ho Chi Minh City's legendary Banh Mi Huynh Hoa.

The 2026 Travelers' Choice Awards: Best of the Best Restaurants are part of Tripadvisor's larger Travelers' Choice Awards umbrella, recognizing travelers' favorite destinations and experiences around the world. The Travelers' Choice Best of the Best Awards are determined based on the quality and quantity of traveler reviews and ratings specific to each subcategory posted on Tripadvisor over a 12-month period, backed by an editorial review process that places winners among the top 1% of listings on the platform.

Best Fine Dining
Celebrating the world's most exceptional restaurants where culinary mastery and unforgettable experiences define every meal.

Top 10 Fine Dining Restaurants in the World

1. Fogón Asado – Buenos Aires, Argentina
2. KOMA Singapore – Singapore
3. The Rhythms Restaurant – Hanoi, Vietnam
4. The Witchery Restaurant – Edinburgh, United Kingdom
5. Meat Market – Valencia, Spain
6. Abrasado – Guaymallen, Argentina
7. Catherine Gramado – Gramado, Brazil
8. Careyes restaurant – Cancun, Mexico
9. Acre – San Jose del Cabo, Mexico
10. El Mercado – Buenos Aires, Argentina

See the full list of the Best of the Best Fine Dining Restaurants in the world here.

Top 10 Fine Dining Restaurants in the U.S.

1. Ristorante Paoletti – Highlands, North Carolina
2. Michael Anthony's Cucina Italiana – Hilton Head, South Carolina
3. Bourbon Steak by Michael Mina – New York City, New York
4. Bourbon Steak by Michael Mina, a Nashville Steakhouse – Nashville, Tennessee
5. Primal Steakhouse – Las Vegas, Nevada
6. Hakkasan Miami – Miami Beach, Florida
7. Beach Walk at Henderson Park Inn – Destin, Florida
8. Brenner's on the River Walk – San Antonio, Texas
9. Vic & Anthony's Steakhouse – Lake Charles, Louisiana
10. Swizzle Dinner & Drinks – Louisville, Kentucky

See the full list of the Best of the Best Fine Dining Restaurants in the U.S. here. 

Best Hidden Gems
Celebrating the world's best-kept culinary secrets, where local flavor, authenticity and unexpected delights turn every meal into a discovery.

Top 10 Hidden Gems Restaurants in the World

1. Tua Casa Hamburgueria E Petiscaria – Maragogi, Brazil
2. Sad Man's Tongue Bar & Bistro – Prague, Czech Republic
3. Hanoi-Oi Kitchen – Hanoi, Vietnam
4. Sfiziarte – Rome, Italy
5. Taberna Clandestina Cascais – Cascais, Portugal
6. Shinjuku Sushi Hatsume – Tokyo, Japan
7. Green Point – Cusco, Peru
8. Archontiko – Agios Nikolaos, Greece
9. Tierra Roja Restaurant – Chia, Colombia
10. Kaleici Steak Gastro Bar – Antalya, Türkiye

See the full list of the Best of the Best Hidden Gems Restaurants in the world here. 

Top 10 Hidden Gems Restaurants in the U.S.

1. Casa Neos – Miami, Florida
2. Caffe Milano – Naples, Florida
3. Pickin Porch Grill – Branson, Missouri
4. Local Goat - New American Restaurant – Pigeon Forge, Tennessee
5. Riverfront Seafood Co – Kingsport, Tennessee
6. Hosteria Romana – Miami Beach, Florida
7. Big Daddy J's 5 Great Things – Cocoa Beach, Florida
8. Gourmet Deli House – Lake Worth, Florida
9. The Trophy Room at Old Kinderhook – Camdenton, Missouri
10. The Travelin Lobster – Bar Harbor, Maine

See the full list of the Best of the Best Hidden Gems Restaurants in the U.S. here.

Best Culinary Experiences
Highlighting immersive food and drink experiences that let travelers taste a culture from the inside out.

Top 10 Food Tours in the World

1. Reykjavik Food Walk - Local Foodie Adventure in Iceland – Reykjavik, Iceland
2. Undiscovered Lisbon Food & Wine Tour by Eating Europe – Lisbon, Portugal
3. Amsterdam Food and Cultural Tour with 10 Tastings – Amsterdam, The Netherlands
4. From Split: Krka Waterfalls, Food & Wine Tasting Tour – Split, Croatia
5. Rome Twilight Trastevere Food Tour by Eating Europe – Rome, Italy
6. Hungry Osaka Street Food Tour: 15 Tastings & 3 Drinks with a Local – Osaka, Japan
7. From Barcelona: Half-Day Montserrat, Tapas & Wine Tour – Barcelona, Spain
8. Greek Food Walking Tour in Athens – Athens, Greece
9. Devour Paris Ultimate Food Tour – Paris, France
10. Lima Ultimate Peruvian Food Tour – Lima, Peru

Top 10 Food Tours in the U.S.

1. Chef Guided Food Tour of Pike Place Market – Seattle, Washington
2. New Orleans Food Walking Tour of the French Quarter (Small-Group) – New Orleans, Louisiana
3. Charleston French Quarter or Brunch Food Tour with 7+ Tastings – Charleston, South Carolina
4. Greenwich Village Food Tour | Tasty Tours NYC – New York City, New York
5. Boston Sweet Treats Food Tour: Fresh Donuts, Cider & Much More – Boston, Massachusetts
6. Nashville: Authentic Food Tour with 5 Tastings of Local Dishes – Nashville, Tennessee
7. Chicago Favorites Ultimate Food and Walking Tour – Chicago, Illinois
8. Taste of Little Italy in San Diego – San Diego, California
9. Seattle's Sweetest Food Tour: Delicious Donuts, Beignets, & More – Seattle, Washington
10. Las Vegas: The Strip's Celebrity Chefs Tour or Downtown Food Tour – Las Vegas, Nevada

Top 10 Viral Right Now in the World

1. Dishoom – London, United Kingdom
2. Banh Mi Huynh Hoa – Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
3. Mad Hatter's Tea at Sanderson's – London, United Kingdom
4. Tokyo Tsukiji Fish Market Food Walking Tour with 5 Tastings – Tokyo, Japan
5. Turkey and the Wolf – New Orleans, Louisiana, United States
6. Private Street Food Tour by Motorbike/Car with Local Students – Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
7. Cremeria Santo Stefano – Bologna, Italy
8. #1 Rated Lima Cooking Class: Make Ceviche, Causa & Pisco Sours! – Lima, Peru
9. Istanbul Taste of Two Continents Food Tour - Spice Market & Ferry – Istanbul, Türkiye
10. Karaköy Güllüoğlu – Istanbul, Türkiye

See all category winners and full global rankings on the Tripadvisor Travelers' Choice Awards portal.

More to Discover and Enjoy
Tripadvisor's 2026 Travelers' Choice Awards: Best of the Best Restaurants winners span a wide variety of tastes and activity levels, from standout dining destinations to immersive culinary experiences. For a full list of this year's winners, visit https://www.tripadvisor.com/TravelersChoice-Restaurants.

Methodology
The 2026 Best of the Best Restaurants are calculated based on the quality and quantity of reviews and ratings for restaurants on Tripadvisor collected over a 12-month period, July 1, 2025 through June 30, 2026, specific to each award subcategory, as well as an additional editorial process.

About Tripadvisor Inc.
Tripadvisor, the world's largest travel guidance platform*, helps millions of people each month** become better travelers, from planning to booking to taking a trip. Travelers across the globe use Tripadvisor's website and app to discover where to stay, what to do and where to eat based on guidance from those who have been there before. With more than a billion reviews and contributions, travelers turn to Tripadvisor to find deals on accommodations, book experiences, reserve tables at delicious restaurants and discover great places nearby.

Tripadvisor LLC is a wholly owned subsidiary of Tripadvisor, Inc. (Nasdaq: TRIP). The subsidiaries of Tripadvisor, Inc. own and operate a portfolio of travel media brands and businesses, operating under various websites and apps.

* Source: SimilarWeb, unique users de-duplicated monthly, August 2026
** Source: Tripadvisor internal log files

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SOURCE Tripadvisor