Chicago’s dining scene goes head to head with NYC in OpenTable’s 2026 Top 100 Restaurants

Chicago earned 12 spots on OpenTable’s Top 100 Restaurants in America for 2026, placing the city second nationally behind New York City. New York claimed 14 spots, while San Francisco followed with eight, according to the Chicago Business Journal.

The list highlights restaurants that diners sought out and rated highly during the year. OpenTable announced in its statement that it compiled more than 11 million reviews from verified diners, along with reservation and dining data collected from Sept. 1, 2025, through Aug. 31, 2026.

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Chicago’s 12 honorees

The Chicago restaurants named to the list are Daisies, Ever, Gibsons Italia, Joe’s Seafood, Prime Steak & Stone Crab, Kasama and Le Colonial. The group also includes Lula Café, Mon Ami Gabi, North Pond, Pizz’Amici, RL and Zarella Pizzeria & Taverna.

OpenTable’s published list presents the restaurants alphabetically rather than ranking them from first to 100th. The Chicago selections represent a broad mix of dining styles, including Italian, French, Filipino, Vietnamese, seafood, steakhouse and neighborhood cuisine.

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How OpenTable created the list

The company said its ranking considered several measures beyond diner ratings. These included the share of five-star reviews, the number of reservation alerts set by users, how far in advance reservations were made, the percentage of available capacity booked, and the number of direct searches for each restaurant.

“Diners have no shortage of places they can turn to for dining inspiration, but none quite like our Top 100, which casts a wide net across the country and reflects the restaurants Americans are truly loving,” Amy Wei, OpenTable’s chief operating officer, said in its statement. “Our 2027 Dining Trends Report found 68% of Americans expect to visit restaurants the same or more often – and that many are finding new reasons to dine out—we hope this list inspires every occasion, from holiday celebrations to just because.”

OpenTable’s 2026 list places Chicago among the country’s strongest dining markets. With 12 restaurants recognized, the city trails only New York while matching its reputation as a destination for nationally recognized dining.