Restaurants are not only thriving, but reinvesting in themselves and their future, not just in the obvious ways, but also by deepening their relationships with winemakers near and far. And those bonds are reflected in their carefully assembled wine lists.
For proof, take a look at our newly revealed list of more than 3,700 restaurants that have earned Restaurant Awards from Wine Spectator in 2024. This year’s winning restaurants hail from all 50 states and over 75 countries and territories. The awards are given across three categories: Award of Excellence, Best of Award of Excellence and Grand Award.
Wine Spectator is proud to honor all the hard work of our award-winning restaurants.
“I’ve always felt that the Wine Spectator Restaurant Awards are a great indicator of care that is being put into a restaurant’s beverage offerings,” said Daniel McKeown, wine director at newly upgraded Best of Award of Excellence winner Manta at the Mauna Kea Resort in Hawaii. “It’s an incredible honor for my team’s passion and commitment to excellence, as well as my own, to be recognized by the Wine Spectator Restaurant Awards.”
“Recognition with a Wine Spectator award extends far beyond the wine list a guest holds in their hands,” says wine director Josh Nadel of new Best of Award of Excellence winner Café Carmellini. “In truth, it represents extraordinary dedication and collaboration by an entire team—from ownership to daily operations.”
“It takes a village to create a wine program!” echoed Natalie Tapken, wine director for Maryland award winners the Wardroom, the Stewart and Bas Rouge. “We work arduously to select wines that complement our chef’s craft with love and care. Our team is deeply honored to be recognized by Wine Spectator.”
This year, 2,150 restaurants earned an Award of Excellence for their thoughtfully chosen lists. Generally, these lists average around 100 selections but can be much larger. They offer diners quality and diverse selections that are in line with the restaurant’s cuisine and price point. Each wine is listed with all pertinent information and clear presentation.
The Best of Award of Excellence is given to restaurants that take their love of wine a step further, through staff training to ensure guests have knowledgeable assistance, hosting events such as wine dinners, or carefully designed presentation and more in-depth sourcing. These lists offer approximately 350 or more carefully curated selections, offering a vast array of wines from top producers, showing a wide breadth of varying regions and vintage depth. In 2024, 1,531 restaurants achieved our Best of Award of Excellence, and 182 of them were new to the program this year.
The Grand Award is Wine Spectator’s most prestigious honor and only bestowed upon the world’s elite wine programs. These wine lists generally have 1,000 selections or more, present diners with a depth of vintages from some of the most highly regarded producers and include multiple bottle formats. All of our Grand Award winners offer the ultimate dining experience: creative presentation, flawless customer service, endless wine knowledge and pristine cellar conditions. Candidates for the Grand Award are required to go through a rigorous inspection by one of our judges. This year we are recognizing 96 worthy restaurants throughout the world with Grand Awards.
Four restaurants have earned Wine Spectator’s Grand Award for the first time in 2024, joining this exclusive group. The new 2024 Grand Award winners are:
Read the full profiles at WineSpectator.com/Restaurants, or in the Aug. 31 issue of Wine Spectator, available on newsstands July 9.
To find more great dining spots for enjoying wine, go to the Restaurant Search at WineSpectator.com/Restaurants, which features all of Wine Spectator’s 2024 Restaurant Award winners in a free database searchable by name, location, cuisine type, wine strengths, pricing and award level. To access restaurant recommendations on the go, try Wine Spectator’s Restaurant Awards app, available free in the App Store. All award winners are featured in the Aug. 31 issue of Wine Spectator.
Throughout the year, keep on top of restaurant-related news and trends and learn more about the Restaurant Award winners in Q&As with leading sommeliers, chefs and restaurateurs, as well as in roundups of exciting restaurants in different categories, from restaurants with super-value wine lists to bucket-list destinations. Sign up for our free Private Guide to Dining email newsletter so you don’t miss anything!