Who’s Really Defining Canadian Dining Right Now? Inside Canada’s 100 Best Restaurants 2026

From destination-worthy tasting menus to buzzy new openings reshaping the conversation around food in Canada, this year’s Canada’s 100 Best Restaurants rankings offer a fascinating snapshot of where the country’s dining scene is headed next. With Vancouver’s Sumibiyaki Arashi taking the title of Best New Restaurant, and a fresh wave of chefs and concepts earning national attention, editor-in-chief Jacob Richler joins us to break down the biggest trends, what “best” really means in 2026, and why Canadians remain endlessly obsessed with where to eat next. —Noa Nichol

Canada’s 100 Best has become the definitive dining guide in this country—what does “best” actually mean in 2026, and how has that definition evolved?

Best should mean that a restaurant ticks all the boxes – with solid service, good décor, a deep cellar, and a lovely ambience. But above all other considerations it should provide something fantastic in the plate. Top quality ingredients cooked appropriately and attractively presented, with elements of originality, and all flavours coming through as intended, with clarity.

Looking at this year’s list, what major shifts or trends are you seeing in how Canadian chefs are cooking—and what’s defining the “next wave”?

Chefs are cooking less to comply with expectations, and instead more confidently sharing their personal vision. This is very positive.

Vancouver’s Sumibiyaki Arashi taking Best New Restaurant is a big moment—what set it apart in such a competitive field?

Chef Pete is masterful. The attention to detail and having every curious morsel cooked and sauced so perfectly makes it a dazzling experience. No one who eats there will think about chicken the same way again. 

Vancouver consistently punches above its weight on the list—what is it about the city’s dining scene that continues to resonate nationally?

Ambitious chefs, great local products, a culinary ease with Asian and so many other culinary traditions – and a very enthusiastic community of knowledgeable diners. 

With a 160-person judging panel, how do you ensure the rankings remain both credible and reflective of Canada’s diverse food landscape?

160 judges gives us a lot of reach, experience and breadth of opinion. Together it adds up to something of inarguable credibility. That said, we constantly seek ways to improve the list, fine-tuning our process, and adding qualified new judges to the panel.

There’s increasing conversation around sustainability, locality, and storytelling—how much do those factors influence a restaurant’s placement today?

All those considerations are important and are factored into our judges thinking about the food on their plates.

This year introduces “Canada’s 100 Best Recommends”—what gap were you hoping to fill with this new category?

It’s an acknowledgement that on different occasions we look for different sorts of restaurants. C100B Recommends is intended to provide great choices for more casual weeknight dining. Having an unranked category of recommendations allows us to add recommendations all year long – restaurants that resonate with our judges, whether newly opened or old favourites.