Nominee
Marco Vitale
Osteria Lume · New Haven
Turned a 24-seat room into the hardest reservation in the state with a nightly hand-rolled pasta service.
@chefmarcovitale
The 2026 Ballot
CAST YOUR
VOTE
Voting decides the finalists. Back the chefs, bakers and rooms that made this year unforgettable — one vote per category. Rally the group chat and make it count.
Chef of the Year
The knife hand that defined the year.
Nominee
Dana Okafor
Ember & Ash · Hartford
Live-fire cooking that put West African flavors on every best-of list this year.
@chefdanaokafor
Nominee
Lucas Reyes
La Brasa · Stamford
A tasting menu that reads like a love letter to his abuela — and sells out three weeks out.
@lucasreyescooks
Nominee
Priya Nair
Saffron Room · Greenwich
Redefined the coastal Indian tasting menu and mentored half the line cooks on this ballot.
@chefpriyanair
Nominee
Tommy Callahan
The Dockhouse · Mystic
Seafood so fresh the boats text him first. Zero-waste kitchen, standing-room bar.
@tommycallahan
Baker of the Year
The early risers who earned it.
Nominee
Noah Bernard
Levain & Co. · Fairfield
Naturally leavened everything. The croissant line starts at 6am and does not stop.
@noahbakes
Nominee
Sofia Mendez
Dulce Panadería · New Haven
Conchas, guava pastries and a wholesale program feeding half the city’s cafés.
@sofiabakes
Nominee
Harold Kim
Flour Theory · West Hartford
Milk bread that broke the internet and a laminated-dough class with a 200-person waitlist.
@flourtheoryct
Nominee
Rosa Bianchi
Nonna’s Table · Waterbury
Third-generation cannoli and a wedding-cake book filled for the next two years.
@rosabianchibakes
Restaurant of the Year
The room everyone wanted a table at.
Restaurant
The Copper Fox
New Haven
New-American tasting counter with a wine list that punches three states above its zip code.
@thecopperfoxnh
Restaurant
Marisol
Westport
Coastal Spanish small plates and the best patio on the shoreline. Sangria by the pitcher.
@marisolwestport
Restaurant
Harvest Hall
Litchfield
Farm-to-table done without the cliché — 90% of the plate grew within 20 miles.
@harvesthallct
Restaurant
Blue Line Diner
Hartford
A 24-hour institution reborn — chrome, milkshakes, and a midnight burger with a cult following.
@bluelinediner
Restaurant
Anchor Oyster Bar
Mystic
Raw bar theater, a rotating list of 20 oysters, and a martini program worth the drive.
@anchoroysterbar
Best Restaurant — Hartford County
The capital region’s favorite table.
Restaurant
Treva
West Hartford
Modern Italian on the avenue with a wood-fired room and a killer aperitivo hour.
@trevawesthartford
Restaurant
Max Downtown
Hartford
The power-lunch chophouse that still owns every big night in the city.
@maxdowntown
Restaurant
Bear’s Smokehouse
Windsor
Kansas City-style barbecue, burnt ends by noon, and a line that means it.
@bearssmokehouse
Restaurant
Carbone’s Ristorante
Hartford
Old-school tableside service and a red-sauce legacy going strong since 1938.
@carbonesct
Best Restaurant — Fairfield County
The gold coast’s top pick.
Restaurant
The Community Table
Washington
Scandinavian-inflected New American in a light-filled barn. A destination on its own.
@communitytable
Restaurant
Kawa Ni
Westport
Tokyo-tavern izakaya on the river — yakitori, sake, and a buzzing late-night bar.
@kawaniwestport
Restaurant
OKO
Westport
Omakase that regulars guard like a secret. Twelve seats, zero misses.
@okowestport
Restaurant
El Segundo
Norwalk
Wood-grilled Mexican and mezcal flights in South Norwalk’s liveliest room.
@elsegundosono
Best Restaurant — New Haven County
Home of the apizza and so much more.
Restaurant
Frank Pepe Pizzeria
New Haven
The white-clam pie that started a religion. Coal-fired since 1925.
@franksummary
Restaurant
Union League Cafe
New Haven
French brasserie elegance on Chapel Street — the special-occasion standard-bearer.
@unionleaguecafe
Restaurant
Atticus Market
New Haven
All-day café and bakery beloved by students and chefs alike. The bread is the flex.
@atticusmarket
Restaurant
Olea
New Haven
Spanish-Mediterranean small plates that keep winning the shoreline’s heart.
@oleanewhaven