The Most Anticipated Restaurant Openings of 2026
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A global preview of the year's most exciting dining destinations, from Michelin-starred debuts to neighborhood gems.
The restaurant industry enters 2026 with remarkable momentum, as acclaimed chefs expand their empires, international sensations make their American debuts, and ambitious newcomers reimagine everything from steakhouses to street food. From Michelin-starred outposts to neighborhood gems, these are the openings defining the culinary landscape this year.
The Fine Dining Renaissance
Maize
Denver, CO — Spring 2026
Johnny and Kasie Curiel, the husband-and-wife team behind Michelin-starred Alma Fonda Fina, debut their first tasting menu restaurant. The 16-seat Maize explores Mexican cuisine through the lens of masa, featuring an 18-course journey through heirloom corn preparations, regional moles, and ancestral techniques. The intimate format moves guests through multiple stations, from raw preparations to hot dishes showcasing the versatility of Mexico's staple grain.
Oyatte
New York City — March 2026
Coming off his second-place finish on Netflix's Culinary Class Wars, chef Hasung Lee opens this 30-seat contemporary fine dining destination in Murray Hill. With credentials including Atomix, The French Laundry, and Copenhagen's Geranium, Lee's seasonal menu emphasizes technical precision, fermentation, and preservation—featuring ingredients from Crown Daisy Farm upstate, helmed by former French Laundry head farmer Brett Ellis. Sommelier Cécile Chastanet (formerly of Per Se) leads the wine program.
Atelier
Chicago — Open Now
After years in one of Chicago's tiniest fine dining rooms, Michelin-starred Atelier has relocated to a larger Lincoln Square space. Chef Bradyn Kawcak continues his globally influenced, seasonal tasting menus while expanding into a proper bar program featuring cocktails, spirit-free drinks, and accessible small plates like corn fritters and patty melts.
Celebrity Power Moves
JD's Stage Bistro
Chelsea, Michigan — Spring 2026
Actor Jeff Daniels brings his vision to his hometown with this part-music venue, part-bistro concept. Partnering with Tannin Property Group, Daniels aims to create "a world-class music venue" attracting both local and national acts. Chef Nate Wegryn (formerly of Ann Arbor's Echelon Kitchen and Bar) crafts a contemporary menu sourcing heavily from local farmers, featuring wood-fired pizzas and cocktails in a multi-space venue with private event capabilities.
Brasserie Boulud
New York City — Spring 2026
The legendary French chef returns to Lincoln Center with a grand 7,500-square-foot brasserie replacing his former trio of restaurants (Bar Boulud, Boulud Sud, and Épicerie Boulud). Spanning two floors with a 27-seat central bar, private dining rooms, and an intimate speakeasy, the restaurant channels "le grand restaurant" tradition—serving seasonal classics and seafood from morning until late evening.
Simon Kim's Mega-Complex
New York City — 2026
The Cote and Coqodaq owner is launching an ambitious three-floor dining destination at 550 Madison Avenue. The project includes a fifth location of Cote, the expansion of Tokyo's three-Michelin-starred Sushi Yoshitake (in partnership with chef Masahiro Yoshitake), and an unnamed all-day bar and restaurant—marking Kim's biggest NYC footprint yet.
International Sensations Arrive
El Califa de León
New York City — Spring 2026
The legendary Mexico City taco counter—Michelin-starred and established in 1968—opens its first U.S. location in the former Chanson space. Famous for standing-room-only dining and the gaonera (thin-sliced beef filet seared to order with salt and lime), the restaurant brings authentic Mexico City street food culture to Manhattan's Flatiron District.
SoNoMa by SingleThread
Kyoto, Japan — March 2026
In a reverse expansion, Kyle and Katina Connaughton of California's Grand Award-winning SingleThread Farms cross the Pacific to open inside Kyoto's Capella hotel. Drawing from their years living in Japan, the couple will express Sonoma's wine country philosophy through Kyoto's terroir, with Katina working with Kansai region farmers to grow Northern Californian vegetable varieties.
Double Knot
New York City — February 2026
Philadelphia restaurateur Michael Schulson brings his acclaimed sushi and robatayaki concept to Midtown. Known in Philly as a "moody, bi-level Asia-plex," the restaurant offers grilled items and sushi in a sceney atmosphere—marking another expansion from the City of Brotherly Love to Manhattan.
Reimagined Traditions
Emilia
Philadelphia — Winter 2026
Fourteen years in the making, chef Greg Vernick's first opening in over six years reimagines the neighborhood trattoria. Located in Fishtown–East Kensington, Emilia focuses on pasta as the star but moves through seasonal vegetables, antipasti, and wood-fired entrées. Designed for frequent visits rather than special occasions, it channels Vernick's attention to detail into an accessible format.
Gusi
New York City — February 2026
Husband-and-wife team Boris Artemyev and Elena Melnikova introduce Eastern European cuisine beyond borscht and pierogies. Named after the Slavic word for "geese," the two-story Greenwich Village restaurant features multiple borscht variations (duck, Lenten with porcini, spicy), puff-pastry dumplings filled with elk, buffalo, and goose, and Mediterranean-influenced options reflecting historical trade routes.
Dean's
New York City — March 2026
The team behind King (Annie Shi and chef Jess Shadbolt) pivots to British seafood with this Soho pub named after Suffolk dayboat fisherman Dean Fryer. Expect raw oysters, grilled Scottish langoustines, Cornish stargazy fish pies, mackerel and potato salads, and sticky syrup pudding—a love letter to Shadbolt's English coastal upbringing.
Regional Highlights
Detroit's Dining Boom
The Motor City sees unprecedented expansion, including Danny Meyer's Union Square Hospitality Group debut (in partnership with Bedrock), the Filipino-inspired cocktail bar Calamansi in Southwest Detroit, and Sunda New Asian bringing modern Southeast Asian cuisine to District Detroit. Jeff Daniels' JD's Stage Bistro joins a rapidly evolving culinary landscape.
Minneapolis-St. Paul
The Twin Cities welcome Shota Indigenous BBQ from chef Sean Sherman and NATIFS, offering casual neighborhood dining featuring three sisters bison stew and braised greens. Saffron returns after nearly a decade, with chef Sameh Wadi diving deeper into Palestinian and Levantine roots in the former Young Joni space, while Revival fried chicken finds new life under Jester Concepts.
Chicago's Evolution
Beyond Atelier's expansion, the city sees Gingie from Boka Restaurant Group (led by former French Laundry and Eleven Madison Park chef Brian Lockwood), and Gibson's Tavern bringing elevated American cuisine to Fulton Market.
The New Wave of Specialized Concepts
Rye by Martin Auer
New York City — Spring 2026
Austrian baker Martin Auer makes his American debut with a bakery-café-shop dedicated solely to 100% rye sourdough bread using grain sourced from Austria. The minimal space features open-face sandwiches, retail European goods, and drinks paired with the dense, distinctive loaves.
Monday Diner
Brooklyn — Summer 2026
Pastry chef Caroline Schiff (formerly of Gage & Tollner) finally opens her long-awaited diner, spotlighting desserts alongside savory dishes. The all-day menu features blintzes with lox, grilled green melts on pickle brine-rye bread, and shareable desserts like coconut sheet cakes and sundaes.
Hōp
Brooklyn — Summer/Fall 2026
Named after the Khmer word for "eat," this Cambodian restaurant and cocktail bar from Red Hook Tavern alumni Bun Cheam and Cait Callahan brings beef skewers, prahok ktiss (Khmer funky pork dip), whole branzino roasted in banana leaves, and wok-fried noodles to the former Seward Co-op Creamery space.
What This Wave Reveals
The class of 2026 reflects several industry shifts: chefs returning to more accessible formats after years of tasting-menu dominance, international expansion accelerating in both directions (American chefs abroad, foreign concepts in the U.S.), and a renewed focus on specialized, single-concept establishments. Whether it's Martin Auer's rye-only bakery or Maize's masa-centric tasting menu, specificity and authenticity drive this year's most exciting openings.
