40 Long Island restaurants earn 2026 Wine Spectator Award

Forty Long Island restaurants earned a spot on Wine Spectator’s 2026 Restaurant Awards list, the magazine announced this week, joining a select group of dining destinations recognized globally for wine excellence. (Editor’s note: An earlier version of this report mistakenly reported that 23 Long Island restaurants earned awards.)

Wine Spectator, considered among the world’s leading authorities on wine, has presented the awards since 1981. This year’s program honored 4,012 restaurants across three tiers: the Award of Excellence (2,083 recipients), the Best of Award of Excellence (1,830 recipients), and the Grand Award, the program’s highest honor, awarded to just 99 restaurants worldwide.

The American Hotel in Sag Harbor earned a Grand Award. Eleven Long Island restaurants were recognized in the Best of Award of Excellence category and 11 earned Award of Excellence honors from the publication.

“The restaurant industry is rapidly transforming as diners become more selective about when, how and what they drink,” said Marvin Shanken, chairman and CEO of Wine Spectator. “Congratulations to the 4,012 restaurants that earned a Restaurant Award and continue to elevate the wine experience for guests around the world.”

The Long Island honorees span the Island’s dining landscape — from North Fork wine country to the South Fork’s summer restaurant corridor, and from the North Shore to the South Shore. Melville, Huntington, Shelter Island and Garden City each have three restaurants on Wine Spectator’s annual list.

Here are the 40 Long Island restaurants on the 2026 Wine Spectator Restaurant Awards list:

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