It's official – these are the restaurants ranked 50-1 on the list of Latin America's 50 Best Restaurants 2025, sponsored by S.Pellegrino and Acqua Panna, as announced on Tuesday 2 December from Antigua Guatemala.
No.50 Julia
Buenos Aires
@julia.restaurante
Chef Julio Martín Báez opened Julia in 2019 as a tiny four-hands affair named after his daughter. Today, the eight-strong team works towards creating a fairer culinary platform, not only with regards to ingredients' origins but also staff wellbeing: Julia opens Monday to Friday for dinner only. Dishes include mussels in a saffron escabeche; asparagus with snow peas, strawberries, tahini and ponzu; grilled catch of the day with an 'nduja and fennel ragu.
No.49 Mil
Moray
@milcentro
Virgilio Martínez and Pía León of Central (The World's Best Restaurant 2023 and member of the Best of the Best hall of fame) oversee the concept, while chef Luis Valderrama leads the kitchen and Martínez's sister, Malena, heads up the Mater Iniciativa research project, which sources ingredients for Mil, Central and Kjolle. A meal at Mil consists of eight courses that explore local ingredients from ecosystems at different altitudes and represents the epitome of destination dining.
No.48 Arami
La Paz
@aramirestaurante
Arami – meaning 'little sky' in Guaraní – was opened in November 2024 by chef Marsia Taha Mohamed, and sociologist and sommelier Andrea Moscoso Weise. The menu explores the connection between the Amazon River and the Andes, considering how these landscapes and ecosystems intersect and the cultural exchange that takes place between these regions. The resulting dishes – such as a fig tart with sacha inchi (mountain peanut) – are thoughtful, creative and almost too pretty to eat.
No.47 Cantina del Tigre
Panama City
@cantinadeltigre
In 2021, chef Fulvio Miranda decided to do what no one else was doing in Panama City: he created a culinary space focused on ceviche, a near-forgotten dish in his country, drawing inspiration from regional recipes. The restaurant serves a range of traditional, but reimagined Panamanian dishes. Miranda's boldness and creativity are showcased in colourful preparations that are gaining increasing popularity across the region.
No.46 Manuel
Barranquilla
@manuelrestaurante
The first restaurant located in this Caribbean city to rank in the extended list of Latin America's 50 Best Restaurants in 2023 at No.77, Manuel took matters up a notch to reach the main ranking in 2024 and once more in 2025. A Colombian approach with international flair sets the pace at this contemporary establishment, which serves both a la carte and an eight-course tasting menu, with particular focus on ingredients from chef Manuel Mendoza's home Atlántico region.
No.45 Karai by Mitsuharu
Santiago
@karaiwsantiago
Created by Mitsuharu 'Micha' Tsumura, the chef behind Lima's world-acclaimed Maido (The World's Best Restaurant 2025), Karai translates his Peruvian-Japanese philosophy through the lens of Chilean ingredients. The kitchen team is helmed by chef Sebastián Jara, working alongside Gerson Céspedes, executive chef of the W Santiago, who previously led Karai's kitchen. Both chefs trained under Mitsuharu and share his commitment to honouring Nikkei traditions while evolving them with a distinctly Chilean accent.
No.44 Osso
Lima
@ossocarnes
Chef Renzo Garibaldi studied with meat expert Joshua Applestone in New York, then returned to Peru to work as a butcher, starting out by making artisanal chorizo. In 2013, he opened Osso (the name deriving from the Latin word for bone, because without bones, there's no meat), a restaurant where butchery, quality produce and fire combine to glorious effect.
No.43 Sikwa
San José
@sikwa.cr
Having travelled around Costa Rica to get to know the country's diverse gastronomic heritage from its Indigenous communities, chef Pablo Bonilla interprets traditional ingredients and culinary techniques, as well as recipes that have been passed down through generations orally at Sikwa. The first restaurant in the country to ever be voted into the list, Sikwa is known as boundary-pushing and trailblazing in Costa Rica's culinary scene.
No.42 Mercado 24
Guatemala City
@mercado24gt
There are 23 local markets in Guatemala City and this restaurant likes to consider itself the 24th, given the focus the kitchen places on market-fresh cuisine. After undertaking culinary training in Mérida, chef Pablo Díaz racked up a heap of experience as head chef of Manzanilla in Ensenada, Baja California. Returning to his home country in 2014, he opened Mercado 24 a year later.
No.41 Humo Negro
Bogotá
@humonegro_bog
After returning to his native Colombia, chef Jaime Torregrosa Correa opened his own take on a Japanese izakaya. The upshot is a relaxed spot whose small plates – all designed to share – feature Latin American, Nordic and Japanese flavours achieved with diverse Colombian ingredients. A cosy spot with a grunge soundtrack, there's also a strong focus on cocktail pairings.
No.40 Crizia
Buenos Aires
@criziarestaurant
Since opening in 2004, Crizia has quietly redefined how Buenos Aires dines on seafood. In a city known for its beef, chef-owner Gabriel Oggero built a temple to the ocean, celebrating the breadth of Argentina's maritime bounty from Patagonia to the Atlantic coast. The restaurant's ethos combines culinary precision with environmental respect, showcasing ingredients sourced from small-scale producers and sustainable fisheries.
No.39 Rosetta
Mexico City
@restauranterosetta
Chef Elena Reygadas' cuisine has developed and changed over the years. Having started out with a soft spot for fresh pastas and Italian-influenced recipes, the focus is now on presenting traditional Mexican dishes in a new light. Diners at Rosetta may also pick up one of Reygadas' cuadernos, self-published notebooks about different aspects of gastronomy – from the influence of neo-liberalism on the modern diet to the role the milpa farming system plays in Mexico.
No.38 Oteque
Rio de Janeiro
@oteque_rj
Opened in 2018 by Brazilian chef Alberto Landgraf – whose roots are Japanese and German – Oteque encompasses an open-plan kitchen and dining room, a small chef's table seating six, plus a cocktail bar. The seasonal menu is a true celebration of fish and seafood, balancing texture, acidity and temperature. Landgraf lets the freshest products sing with their simplicity, creating dishes that are bursting with flavour.
No.37 Diacá
Guatemala City
@diacagt
The top of a city tower block may seem like an unlikely location for a restaurant that's committed to exploring Guatemala's rich larder of local ingredients, but that's exactly where you'll find Diacá, the Guatemala City restaurant from chef Debora Fadul. Diacá doesn't limit itself to traditional Guatemalan recipes. Instead, recipes from all over are reinterpreted through the lens of local produce: there's a Mesoamerican take on risotto (made using corn) and gnocchi made from yuca.
No.36 Trescha
Buenos Aires
@trescharestaurant
Tomás Treschanski followed his passion for the culinary arts and trained in London before undertaking various stages at the likes of Azurmendi, Barrafina, Frantzén, 108 and Boragó. Aged just 25, he opened Trescha with the aim of following the fine-dining ideals of those restaurants, but using mostly Argentine ingredients. An immersive experience, dinner starts at the bar before moving to the chef's counter, where the kitchen team moves seamlessly as one.
No.35 Aramburu
Buenos Aires
@arambururesto
After training around the world with the likes of Daniel Boulud, Charlie Trotter and Martín Berasategui, Gonzalo Aramburu returned to Argentina in 2007 and opened his eponymous restaurant. With a creative vision anchored in research and technique, he designs an artistic 16-course tasting menu with seasonal products, reimagining classic Argentine cuisine.
No.34 Afluente
Bogotá
@afluenterestaurante
Afluente, meaning 'tributary' in Spanish, wouldn't exist without Colombia's páramos: biodiverse, high-altitude ecosystems, set along the Andean mountain range. These landscapes have become a fertile muse for Afluente's head chef, Jeferson García, who has worked in some of Latin America's best kitchens, including Boragó in Santiago, and travelled extensively around the world, honing his craft in Thailand (at Gaggan and GA) and in Denmark (at Jordnær and Kadeau, among others).
No.33 Rafael
Lima
@rafaelrestaurante
Rafael, the eponymous restaurant of super-successful lawyer-turned-chef Rafael Osterling, opened in 2000. For more than two decades, Osterling and his team have been cherry-picking gastronomic tropes from Peru's historic dishes – as well as taking touches from the Nikkei canon and left-field inspiration from the chef's international travels – to create their own style of cuisine.
No.32 Huniik
Mérida
@huniikmid
Huniik is the fine-dining flagship of Mérida-born chef Roberto Solis, who is the founder and driving force behind nueva cocina yucateca (new Yucatecan cuisine) – a movement that seeks to represent and develop the region's food and gastronomy by blending locality, tradition and culinary innovation. The dishes are all centred on the region's distinctive and sustainably sourced ingredients, with examples such as yellowfin tuna and Yucatecan ponzu wrapped in a hoja santa 'flute'.
No.31 Demo Magnolia
Santiago
@demo.magnolia
Chef Pedro Chavarría is the mind behind Demo Magnolia and he focuses on combining creative and modern techniques with respect for local ingredients. The tasting menu experience takes place in Demo Magnolia's 15-seater dining room; an intimate affair celebrating locally sourced ingredients, transformed by Chavarría's highly refined touches. Snacks include yellow langoustine croquette with salsa roja, while tofu with noodles and vegetable broth and duck breast with salsa oriental form the latter section of the tasting menu.
No.30 Máximo
Mexico City
@maximobistrot
Dishes at Máximo are a constant source of surprise, offering unexpected flavour combinations that reflect chef Eduardo 'Lalo' Garcia's creative vision. Think wagyu-cross beef rib-eye with mole, porcini mushroom and poblano pepper soup, and citrus sorbet with prickly pear granita. Dishes can be experienced individually or as part of a full tasting menu experience.
No.29 Cordero
Caracas
@corderoccs
Following a stint behind the burners in Europe and the Middle East, Issam Koteich returned to his native Venezuela and opened his first restaurant in the city of Mérida. At Cordero, grass-raised lamb is the star on each dish of the multi-course tasting menu, Koteich's delicate hand showcases it in a multitude of ways – from jerky to cheese and even lamb chops – ensuring the palate is continually surprised.
No.28 Yum Cha
Santiago
@yumchacl
Chef Nicolás Tapia launched Yum Cha after travelling to China and journeying through the country's tea regions, discovering for himself the Cantonese tradition of yum cha (to drink tea), which inspired the chef to open a restaurant centred on the ancient leaves. The restaurant embodies reflection, curiosity and connection, drawing from Chinese and Chilean culinary traditions while embracing an artisan's mindset: extracting depth from simplicity, valuing skill over luxury, and celebrating freshness as the ultimate indulgence.
No.27 El Mercado
Buenos Aires
@elmercadofaena
El Mercado's taverna-style space holds both a clay oven and open-pit barbecue, making for a flame-centred guest experience. Head chef and grillmaster Emiliano Yulita, who has worked with Faena for more than a decade, chooses to focus mostly on open-fire-cooked Argentine beef, creating a country-style kitchen in the heart of the city.
No.26 La Mar
Lima
@lamarcebicherialima
While Peru's gastronomic godfather, Gastón Acurio, founded La Mar, its current head chef is one of Acurio's trusted culinary soldiers, Anthony Vásquez. He led the Buenos Aires branch of the same name before returning to his native Peru to head up the restaurant located in trendy Miraflore, where diners can expect a buzzy atmosphere and tropical soundtrack.
No.25 A Casa do Porco
São Paulo
@acasadoporcobar
Meaning 'House of the Pig' in Portuguese, A Casa do Porco is named for its focus on pork in all its forms, with a tasting menu and a la carte offering that uses every part of the pig. In recent years, it has adapted to changing dietary requirements, introducing a vegetarian menu that tastes as good as the original. The quirkily decorated restaurant in the heart of downtown São Paulo is owned by chef Jefferson Rueda.
No.24 El Preferido de Palermo
Buenos Aires
@elpreferidodepalermo
Not content with having just one iconic establishment in the neighbourhood, Pablo Rivero and Guido Tassi (the duo behind the ever-popular Don Julio) opened El Preferido de Palermo. Styled after a classic Buenos Aires bodegón, the magic of El Preferido lies in the products: organic vegetables, homemade preserves and sausages made by master butcher Guido Tassi, which are exhibited in a cellar at the back of the dining room are a reminder of Argentine tradition.
No.23 Leo
Bogotá
@leorestaurantcol
Celebrity chef Leonor Espinosa's flagship restaurant showcases little-known Colombian ingredients and champions local communities and gastronomic traditions. An economist and artist by training, Espinosa's love of anthropology, contemporary art and culture is evident in both her cooking and the restaurant itself: a bright, modern room adorned with bold lighting.
No.22 Arca
Tulum
@arcatulum
Chef José Luis Hinostroza Buenrostro, hailing from Tijuana in Baja California, reinvents Mexican street food dishes with local ingredients and modern techniques. He brings the explosion of flavours of his hometown's street food scene to the Caribbean jungle, creating unique recipes with sophisticated Mexican taste. Alongside the nostalgia and inventiveness, fire is an important element in the kitchen.
No.21 Niño Gordo
Buenos Aires
@xniniogordox
Both the decor and the menu at Nino Gordo are inspired by the owners' trips across Asia. A small-but-mighty kitchen led by Germán Sitz and Pedro Peña delivers a menu that marries traditional Argentine culinary techniques with the flavours of East and Southeast Asia. Think crispy karaage (fried chicken) dipped into salsa verde, or parrilla-grilled sausage with wasabi and tamarind. Dishes are fast and fun, pooling inspiration from a wide gamut of Asian cuisines.
No.20 Evvai
São Paulo
@evvai_sp
Chef Luiz Filipe Souza serves only one option at Evvai: a 13-course tasting menu showcasing Brazilian and Italian fusion. The scallops sautéed in duck fat are a surprising and fun staple, which have been on the menu since the restaurant opened. Diners will definitely not want to miss dessert. Bianca Mirabili, winner of Latin America's Best Pastry Chef Award 2025, is the star here. At just 23, she created the restaurant's iconic honey dessert, which gained her recognition.
No.19 Sublime
Guatemala City
@sublimerestaurantegt
Sublime portrays Guatemala's essence through a tasting menu conceptualised by chef Sergio Díaz with Jocelyn Degollado, an anthropologist with an understanding of how food intertwines with the country's iconic events. The 12-course tasting menu usually begins with dishes inspired by pre-Columbian times, passes through Spanish colonial syncretism or mestizaje, and ends with the flavours of the present, inviting diners to distil their own reflections on the future. There is also an a la carte menu worth exploring.
No.18 Maito
Panama City
@maitopanama
Mario Castrellón was among the earliest chefs to pioneer the vision of a new Panamanian contemporary cuisine and in 2016, Maito became the first restaurant from Central America to appear in Latin America's 50 Best Restaurants. Diners can enjoy the contrasts of Panamanian cuisine, taking a whirlwind tour through the Caribbean, Indigenous, Asian, Creole, Afro-Antillean and American influences present in Panama's multicultural culinary identity.
No.17 Fauna
Valle de Guadalupe
@faunarestaurante
Chef David Castro Hussong and pastry chef Maribel Aldaco Silva opened Fauna in 2017 after working and travelling around the world. Today, the couple creates experimental menus which change daily, using exclusively seasonal and local ingredients. Standout dishes include a tuna fin and beef trotter tostada, sea snail with peanut and shitake mushroom and suckling pig with pipián.
No.16 Villa Torél
Ensenada
@villatorelmx
Born in Mexico City, chef Alfredo Villanueva moved to Monterrey when he was young and lived there for more than 20 years. A master of rice and fire, he moved to Ensenada with his wife Denise to open Villa Torél, creating a place where food doesn't only gather people around the table, but also generates community and positive opportunities for everyone involved. He calls his concept 'proximity cuisine'.
No.15 Alcalde
Guadalajara
@restalcalde
Meaning 'mayor' in Spanish, Alcalde's fare is based on chef Francisco 'Paco' Ruano's simple and 'frank' Mexican cooking. Set in a stylish, welcoming setting in Guadalajara, the menu has worldwide influences but is rooted in the Jalisco region. Local ingredients dominate, with dishes such as aguachile verde with shrimp, apple, cucumber and seaweed; and fish of the day with chintextle (Mexican smoked chilli paste), yellow curry and mushroom ceviche.
No.14 Casa Las Cujas
Santiago
@casalascujas
What began more than a decade ago as a beachside kitchen in Cachagua, a small fishing village north of Valparaíso, has evolved into one of Santiago's most beloved seafood destinations. Founded by brothers Juan Pablo, Max and Domingo Raide, Casa Las Cujas brings the spirit of the Pacific Ocean to the capital, celebrating Chile's marine bounty like oysters, machas (a type of razor clam) and Patagonian king crab.
No.13 Lasai
Rio de Janeiro
@restaurantelasai
With exceptional, vegetable-led dishes from chef Rafael Costa e Silva and warm, welcoming hospitality by his wife, Malena Cardiel, Lasai has all the ingredients of a standout restaurant. It previously won the Art of Hospitality Award in 2019 for its unpretentious yet professional service and has featured in Latin America's 50 Best Restaurants every year since its opening in 2014.
No.12 Nelita
São Paulo
@nelita.restaurant
Behind a beautiful pistachio-green façade in São Paulo's Pinheiros neighbourhood is the stylish dining room with exposed brick walls and leather banquettes where Tássia Magalhães and her women-led team work their magic. At Nelita (named after Magalhães' mother), pasta is the star of the show, but there's equal attention to other dishes and a brilliant selection of cocktails and wines displayed in a stunning glass cabinet above the dining room.
No.11 Mayta
Lima
@maytalima
Meaning 'noble land' in the language of the Indigenous Aymara people, the name Mayta emphasises the restaurant's connection with Peru's natural environment and all it offers chefs. Chef Jaime Pesaque's menu focuses on Peruvian ingredients, with dishes including corn with chullpi (roasted corn), quinoa and panca chilli; guinea pig, mashuas (a kind of tuber) cushuro (a blue-green algae) and Andean herbs; and a dish of beetroot, cacao and ayrampo (fruit from a cactus). Each plate is a work of art, with colourful produce front and centre.
No.10 Nuema
Quito
@nuema_restaurante
At Nuema, Ecuador's biodiversity is reviewed daily by chefs Alejandro Chamorro and Pía Salazar. Each dish is a stunning example of avant-garde gastronomy: angular and unusual shapes, bright colours and profound flavours combine to striking effect. Endemic ingredients take centre stage, such as nepia (a fermented paste of cassava and chilli), mashua (a tuber native to the Andes) and river shrimp from Manabí, and the menu changes with the seasons.
No.9 Cosme
Lima
@cosme.pe
After gaining valuable haute cuisine experience in kitchens around the world, chef James Berckemeyer returned to his native Peru to unveil his first establishment in 2015. Taking a relaxed approach to cooking, Cosme serves up a short but diverse menu, capturing the aromas and flavours of Peruvian home cooking. Menu highlights include grilled Angus sweetbreads with corn, yellow chilli pepper and wine sauce; corn tacos with bbq ribs, beans, avocado and cabbage; and cau cau (a traditional Peruvian stew) with prawns, scallops and potato.
No.8 Tuju
São Paulo
@tuju_sp
Led by chef Ivan Ralston, the restaurant's 10-course menu is strictly seasonal, changing every three months so that every ingredient is used when at its peak. Ethical concerns are paramount here, and the team works closely with local fruit and vegetable producers and uses only Brazilian meat raised on farms with strong social and environmental credentials. The airy, modern space – with decor blending natural materials and lush gardens – enhances the service, elevating hospitality across three distinct areas: a bar-patio on the ground floor, the main dining room on the second floor and a terrace for post-dinner moments.
No.7 Quintonil
Mexico City
@rest_quintonil
Quintonil is the setting for chef Jorge Vallejo's boundary-pushing Mexican cuisine and his wife Alejandra Flores' exceptional hospitality. Focused on fresh, local ingredients and traditional Mexican flavours and techniques weaved into modern preparations, it's one of the most luminous beacons of Mexico's fine dining scene. Impressively, many of the ingredients travel just 30 metres from urban garden to plate.
No.6 Boragó
Santiago
@boragoscl
Opened by Rodolfo Guzmán in 2006, Boragó is deeply rooted in Mapuche culture. Inspired by the Indigenous hunter-gatherers of Southern Chile and Argentina, Guzmán strives to incorporate the autochthonous plants of the nation into the restaurant's vast pantry. He works with more than 200 people, including foraging communities and small producers all over the country, to bring seasonal and fresh goods to the plate. The ingredients come from coastlines, mountain tops or even the restaurant's nearby orchard.
No.5 Celele
Cartagena
@celele_restaurante
Chef Jaime Rodríguez spent years exploring the Caribbean coast of Colombia with former restaurant partner Sebastián Pinzón, meeting Indigenous people, discovering new flavours and ingredients and documenting recipes that were in danger of being lost. Now helmed solely by chef Rodríguez, Celele was named the winner of the Sustainable Restaurant Award 2025, as part of The World's 50 Best Restaurants, with the judges recognising the team's commitment to native regional ingredients and partnerships with local communities, as well as its ethical sourcing.
No.4 Mérito
Lima
@meritorest
Combining produce from the surrounding area with flashes and memories of his country of origin, chef Juan Luis Martínez unites the cuisines of Peru and his native Venezuela at Mérito. On the tasting menu, you'll find dishes like the Andean curry; beef, arracacha (a starchy root vegetable) and mango; and cocona (an Andean fruit) with mashua (a local tuber) and lemon verbena.
No.3 Don Julio
Buenos Aires
@donjulioparrilla
More than 25 years after owner-sommelier Pablo Rivero opened his neighbourhood steakhouse on a corner of Palermo, he is still serving some of the best beef cuts, local wines and authentic Argentine hospitality you can find anywhere. Nearly everything found on Don Julio's menu comes from the restaurant's own farm outside of Buenos Aires. Grilled seasonal vegetables are a popular choice, as are the restaurant's famous salads. The juicy servings of Aberdeen Angus and Hereford cattle haven't only been farmed according to regenerative practices but are also butchered and aged entirely in-house.
No.2 Kjolle
Lima
@kjollerest
Pía León rose to fame as the head chef of Central, which was named The World's Best Restaurant in 2023. In 2018, she opened Kjolle, her first solo restaurant, where she zeros in on Peru's vibrant pantry and lets her gastronomic instincts run wild. It's safe to say this independent venture has been a hit: not only is Kjolle The Best Restaurant in Peru 2025, it is also the winner of the Art of Hospitality Award 2025, sponsored by Buchanan's 18.
No.1 El Chato
Bogotá
@elchato_rest
This contemporary Colombian bistro, led by chef Álvaro Clavijo, pays homage to the producers it works with and applies global techniques to highlight local ingredients. Keeping seasonality front of mind, Clavijo creates delightful courses that enhance Colombian ingredients, such as heart of palm with rambutan, coconut and seaweed; and beef tartare with tendon, yacon (a native root) and mushroom garum. In 2025, El Chato is named The Best Restaurant in Latin America.
Discover more about the venues on the list of Latin America's 50 Best Restaurants 2025, as well as all the special award winners.
