The best restaurants in Latvia for the MICHELIN 2026 guide have been named
In October 2025, the best restaurants in Latvia that will be included in the 2026 MICHELIN guide were announced, as well as the restaurants that will receive MICHELIN stars. The event was organised by the Latvian Investment and Development Agency (LIAA) in cooperation with representatives of the MICHELIN guide.
Three new restaurants have been recognised, and thus a total of 34 Latvian restaurants are recommended in the third edition of the MICHELIN guide – 27 in Riga and seven outside the capital. In total, the MICHELIN Guide Latvia 2026 recommends two restaurants with one MICHELIN star and five restaurants that have received the Bib Gourmand for excellent price-quality ratio.
Impact on tourism development
MICHELIN recognition and rating strengthen the reputation of the catering and hospitality industry, promoting investments in quality, service improvement and the introduction of new solutions. Gastronomic tourism is becoming an increasingly important travel segment – guests who visit a location to enjoy high-class cuisine tend to stay longer at their destination and spend more. Obtaining MICHELIN stars and other recognitions certainly promotes economic growth, creates new jobs and helps create an attractive and recognisable image for Latvia in the world.
Industry representatives are positive about the MICHELIN guide
Inese Vīcupa, manager of the Whitehouse restaurant, emphasises that the presence of MICHELIN in Latvia significantly contributes to the development of restaurants – it attracts guests who travel specifically to evaluate restaurant performance and, consequently, to learn about what else Latvia has to offer while raising quality standards and strengthening trust in Latvian cuisine. Uģis Bormanis, manager of the Akustika restaurant in Valmiera, calls the MICHELIN recognition the highest award in the field of hospitality and the dream of every restaurant. Getting into the guide was an important milestone for his team, and in the first year alone, the number of foreign guests increased by approximately 70%. This benefits not only the restaurant, but also the city and Latvia as a whole, as gastro tourists use the guide to venture outside the capital and combine an excellent meal with other travel aims.
MICHELIN recognition
MICHELIN stars are awarded to restaurants with excellent cuisine, assessing the quality of the products, the harmony of flavours, the mastery of the cooking technique, the chef’s personality and consistently high quality. The restaurants JOHN Chef’s Hall and Max Cekot Kitchen in Riga will retain their one-star rating in 2026.
The Bib Gourmand award recognises restaurants that offer good food at an affordable price. Two new restaurants join this category in 2026 – SMØR Bistro in Riga, which offers French classics and Nordic-inspired dishes, as well as H.E. Vanadziņš in Cēsis, which offers regional dishes in a modern atmosphere at affordable prices alongside attractive accommodations. Three Riga restaurants that were previously awarded the Bib Gourmand – Milda, Shōyu and Snatch – retain their ratings this year.
This year’s MICHELIN main selection includes 27 restaurants, and two more – The Catch and Māsa – join the guide for the first time. Riga’s The Catch, located in a vaulted cellar, offers an extensive Japanese menu – from fine sushi and tempura to robata grill dishes and carefully crafted cocktails. Meanwhile, Māsa, located in the central district of Riga, combines local products with Mediterranean and sometimes Asian motifs with a bright, calm interior and youthful energy.
The MICHELIN Green Star highlights restaurants that combine excellent gastronomy with conscious, environmentally friendly actions and sustainable initiatives, which are reducing their environmental impact and inspiring both gourmets and the entire hospitality industry. Pavāru māja received this recognition in 2023 and continues to consistently implement an environmentally responsible approach.
Special MICHELIN awards are given to the outstanding people and teams whose passion and craftsmanship make a visit to their restaurant truly unforgettable, while the guide’s culinary recognition is awarded to restaurants as a whole. In various nominations, special MICHELIN awards were received by Kaspars Barsukovs from SMØR Bistro in Riga, Timofei Monahhov from Seasons in Riga, Sergejs Šiporovs and the team from The Catch in Riga, and Ivars Kalniņš from Riviera in Riga.