The most anticipated restaurant openings of 2026

(Credit: John Troxell)

From flame-seared dishes in Mexico to avant-garde cooking in India, these six new restaurants are worth travelling for this year.

Pinpointing what exactly makes a new restaurant buzzy isn't a perfect science. Once, all you might have needed was an acclaimed restauranteur's name. But in today's oversaturated scene of celebrity chefs, awards and collaborations, restaurants have to work overtime to gain international attention. 

"What makes a place truly great and [highly anticipated is its] ability to shape culture and make news," says Jamila Robinson, the Editor in Chief of Bon Appétit and North American East Academy Chair for World's 50 Best. "We know the food will be delicious, we know the chef can cook, but is it going to cement the zeitgeist of where restaurants are heading in the future?" 

Just like art, restaurants mirror a particular moment in time. "These restaurants reflect an intake of trends, changes and shifts in society, as well as the vision of the chef; they also tell a story about what we should be thinking about next," says Robinson.

From a new venture by India's most globally celebrated chef to a farmhouse-inspired experience in the heart of Manhattan, these are six of the restaurant openings we're most excited about in 2026.

Acclaimed restauranteurs Kyle and Katina Connaughton are working with local Kansai farmers at their newest venture (Credit: John Troxell)

SoNoMa by SingleThread, Kyoto

SingleThread, the farm-driven restaurant and inn located in California's Sonoma Wine Country, has no shortage of accolades: three Michelin stars, a #8 spot on the 2025 World's 50 Best North American Restaurants list and the #1 ranking on the global restaurant guide La Liste. Now, after extensive time spent in Japan, co-owners Kyle and Katina Connaughton are bringing their distinct brand to Kyoto with the opening of SoNoMa by SingleThread in March. 

Guests will be guided through a tasting menu that captures the essence of Kyoto, weaving in stories of local farmers, artisans and culture. At the same time, the restaurant will also reflect their North Californian sensibility. "Our goal with SoNoMa is to express the incredible terroir and soul of Kyoto while finding those shared threads with our California Wine Country home," says Kyle. 

The couple will leverage relationships they've forged over their years in Japan. "By working hand-in-hand with the multigenerational farmers and artisans of the Kansai region, we're able to weave their personal stories directly into the menu," Kyle added. "Between the native Japanese varieties and the varieties we've brought from our own farm [in California], the experience becomes a living dialogue – a journey that honours Kyoto's deep agricultural history."

Robinson is especially excited about the restaurant's opening. "While SingleThread is squarely California, SoNoMa will incorporate culture and history into a culture already imbued with it," she said. "I'm ready to book my ticket."

Raga marks the return of acclaimed Indian Chef Gaggan Anand to his home country (Credit: Saluk Kaewchuer)

Raga, New Delhi

After years at the top of the global dining world, Indian Chef Gaggan Anand is starting a new chapter in June with the opening of Raga in New Delhi. Anand's eponymous Bangkok restaurant, Gaggan, has been on the World's 50 Best list four times, reaching #1 in Asia in 2025. But according to Vir Sanghvi, one of India's best-known journalists: "Now, he is eager to do new things."

Sanghvi says that for years, Anand felt India wasn't quite ready for his irreverent style of avant-garde cooking. But after successful pop-ups across the country, he believes the moment has arrived: Raga represents the culmination of Anand's evolution as a chef. It is also an opportunity for him to highlight his longtime protégé, Indonesian Chef Rydo Anton.

As Sanghvi explains, many of Gaggan's most iconic creations will appear on two tasting menus, including his legendary yoghurt "explosion", inspired by the olive spherification at El Bulli (the famed Spanish temple of molecular gastronomy where Anand once worked), but reinvented with Indian flavours. The creation became one of the most well-known modern Indian dishes in the world and has been endlessly imitated.

Being in India will allow Anand to work directly with local ingredients in more innovative ways than ever before. Located on Janpath in New Delhi, near major government buildings, luxury hotels and historic shopping districts, Raga is positioned at the heart of the capital. More than just a restaurant opening, it marks the return of India's most globally celebrated chef to his home country.

Celebrated chef and Netflix star Hasung Lee is bringing his talents to Manhattan (Credit: Netflix Korea)

Oyatte, New York City

Having cooked at The French Laundry, Atomix and Gramercy Tavern in the US, as well as Geranium in Copenhagen, Chef Hasung Lee is bringing serious experience to his first solo project, Oyatte: an intimate, farmhouse-inspired space in Murray Hill opening in March.

Though the restaurant incorporates nods to Lee's Korean heritage (its name, pronounced "oh-yaht", means "plum blossom" in Korean), it won't actually serve Korean food.

The menu will draw on Lee's global experience, with a strong focus on sustainable sourcing, fermentation and preservation. The tasting menu is expected to be largely vegetable-forward, including dishes such as a soft cheese course paired with fermented carrot tartare finished with herbs, citrus and spice, and a charred scallop marinated in black mirin. 

Another reason to watch Oyatte closely: on the latest season of Netflix's Culinary Class Wars, Lee was nicknamed "Culinary Monster" and finished as runner-up, earning attention for his technical skill, confidence and determination. Culinary Class Wars fans should keep their eyes open as Lee might serve a dish or two at Oyatte inspired by his cooking on the show.

Trèsind London will be located in the heart of Mayfair (Credit: Trèsind London)

Trèsind, London

The only Indian restaurant in the world with three Michelin stars is Trèsind Studio in Dubai, where Chef Himanshu Saini is lauded for reshaping the way the world perceives Indian food. The multi-course tasting menu tells the story of India's rich and diverse heritage using both new and familiar flavours. Inspired by different regions of the subcontinent, dishes might include a modern riff on pani puri (crisp-fried dough balls filled with potatoes, chickpeas and flavoured water); a reinterpretation of kedgeree (an Anglo-Indian dish of smoked fish, eggs, curry powder and rice derived from an Indian staple of rice and lentils); and a brilliant single-course homage to the ceremonial sadhya, a traditional Keralan banquet feast. 

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Now, Saini is bringing this singular style of cooking to London starting this month at Trèsind London. But is London ready for it? Sanghvi notes that the city has a long tradition of Indian food that is very much its own. "There is a certain British approach to food, but Himanshu is going to London and bringing his own style of Indian food, so how London will receive it will be interesting," said Sanghvi. 

The new spot will be in the heart of Mayfair and is sure to be a captivating celebration of India through a culinary lens.

Chef Jorge Vallejo is considered one of the finest chefs in the Americas (Credit: Getty Images)

Name TBD, Los Cabos

Mexico City has no shortage of extraordinary restaurants, and Quintonil, helmed by Chef Jorge Vallejo and his wife, Alejandra Flores, is widely considered one of its finest. The restaurant was named #3 on the 2025 World's 50 Best list, making it the highest-ranked restaurant in the Americas. The draw? Vallejo's stunning dishes flawlessly marry Mexican techniques and flavours with exquisite precision, yielding food that is deeply innovative and exciting. 

The duo is known for dishes like pork tamale with pibil sauce and tender corn cream, or a plantain fritter with escamoles (ant larvae) served with Melipona bee honey-infused cream, tomato broth and guajillo. Little things, like the fresh herbs picked from the unban garden just steps from the kitchen, make this food shine. 

This autumn, Vallejo and Flores, in partnership with the Mexican Chablé hotel group, are opening a second restaurant whose name is still under wraps in Los Cabos. Just steps from the beach, the new spot's fire pit will sire plenty of flame-kissed dishes. As with Quintonil, early hints suggest the restaurant will reinterpret traditional Mexican cuisine and techniques, with a strong focus on fire, origin and ingredient-driven cooking. Think: innovative takes on tacos.

Boro is expected to attract diners from around the world to its location in Medellín (Credit: Getty Images)

Boro, Medellín

Chef Jaime Rodríguez has long been a pioneer of Cartagena's dining scene, working to preserve lesser-known native ingredients and honour regional heritage. That work has brought significant recognition to his restaurant, Celele, where he was awarded the 2025 Sustainable Restaurant Award from World's 50 Best. 

Shari Bayer, author of the book Chefwise and host of the podcast All in the Industry, says, "Celele is all about community and helping to promote Cartegna, its farms and local businesses," adding, "I've also never seen a chef use flowers as beautifully as he does."

Rodríguez is now heading 700km south to Medellín, a city long associated with hearty cooking built around staples such as meat, corn and beans. The move makes sense: Medellín has emerged as a hotbed of creative talent, especially in the dining landscape, and many now regard it as one of the most exciting cities for dining in Latin America. 

His new restaurant, Boro, opening this spring will be located within Wake Medellín, a $100m complex that describes itself as a luxury, wellness-focused hospitality destination. Boro will be one of a handful of restaurants here that are positioned to draw diners from around the world, but Boro is arguably the headliner. The menu will express the variety and richness of Colombia's pantry, showcasing native ingredients from the Amazon, the Andes and the Caribbean, such as orejero, a native tree seed; iguaraya, a wild cactus; and borojó, an Amazonian fruit — all seen through the chef’s modern, innovative lens. As with Celele, Boro is positioned to give diners an intense sense of place and a dining experience that is singular to Medellín.

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