Any chef can replicate a trend, but few are able to create something truly unique. Here at Club Oenologique, we’re constantly on the hunt for restaurants able to carve out a niche and, in doing so, stand among the best in the world. Which is why we’ve compiled a selection of the hottest new restaurants across the globe – the culinary spots bringing a taste of their homeland to a fresh audience; those getting creative with locally-sourced ingredients; the places building a distinct identity, something we haven’t seen before. And, of course, we’re always looking out for an exemplary drinks list.
This month’s hottest new opening takes its name from Scotland’s Falls of Feugh, an idyllic spot in Aberdeenshire where the river cascades down a chaos of boulders made smooth by centuries of wear. It’s the most remote restaurant on our list, featuring alongside a Nordic-influenced casual fine-dining spot in LA, a taste of Hong Kong’s Cantonese cooking in east London and even an Australian homage to British cuisine offering, among other twists, a tiny Ploughman’s tartlet.
Read on to discover the world’s hottest new restaurants to plan an itinerary around, as updated in July 2026.
The most exciting new restaurants to visit around the globe
Falls by Orry Shand
Aberdeenshire, UK
Nestled between trees on the water’s edge in this area of outstanding natural beauty stands Falls by Orry Shand, a rural fine dining restaurant and the first independent venture from Scotland’s former National Chef of the Year. Perthshire highland wagyu beef, Peterhead monkfish and lobster landed by day boat at Aberdeen harbour are among the tasting menu highlights, though Shand foregoes menus in favour of a ‘curated and immersive’ 12-15-course seasonal dining experience. With Speyside on its doorstep, Falls puts the spotlight on rare drams from iconic Scotch distilleries and independent producers close to home. The dining room, a modern extension of the original 200-year-old cottage the restaurant is housed in, places guests under the trees: vast windows and sky lights flood the room with light and offer panoramic views of the gardens, the footbridge, and the tumbling water below. Eloise Feilden
Open now, fallsbyos.com
Teal
London, UK
The site was formerly home of Sesta and Michelin-starred Pidgin but is now reborn as Teal with Sally Abé as chef-patron. Expect classic techniques employed to deliver modern interpretations of traditional dishes and flavour combinations that are ‘sharper, lighter and more considered’. The menu is encouragingly brief, featuring five snacks, four starters, four mains and four desserts. Eye-catching dishes on one of the first menus include baked bone marrow, snails, garlic, parsley and malt; English asparagus, ricotta dumplings, hazlenut and lemon; beef sirloin, short rib and wild garlic; and a marmalade ice cream sandwich. The wine list is relatively short (reflecting the small size of the restaurant) and, despite proximity to Hackney Central, is full of classic names and styles rather than ‘natural’ styles. A section headed ‘Special Bottles’ allows guests to trade up to the likes of top Burgundy and fine Champagne if the mood takes them. Teal is likely to turn the heads of Michelin inspectors, so worth booking sooner rather than later, before it gets even busier. William Morris
Open now, tealbysallyabe.com
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Lielle
Los Angeles, US
Lielle belongs to Swedish chef Marcus Jernmark who previously worked at Aquavit and Per Se in New York, as well as three-Michelin-starred Restaurant Frantzén in Stockholm. The concept is relaxed fine-dining using Californian produce with Nordic techniques and influences, delivered via a four-course set menu served for $150 a head. To complement the food are wines from a list running to 40 pages, one that includes many of the biggest producers from California and Europe with back vintages to explore. Vintage lighting, leather seating and cherry wood tables without tablecloths ensure the dining room doesn’t look formal or stuffy. WM
Open now, lielle.la
Impala
London, UK
Impala is currently the most hyped restaurant in London and it’s from a group with previous in that regard, as the backers also opened Brat and Mountain. The chef and co-owner is Meedu Saad, who was head chef at Kiln, and he has created a menu that is loosely North African in theme but incorporates plenty of influences from elsewhere too. One constant is the use of a large wood-fired oven and charcoal grill, heat sources that cook dishes like monkfish wrapped in grape leaves; short rib of beef with rosemary; squid; sweetbreads with salted onions and pickled green chillies; and duck roasted in molasses served with fig sauce. Flavours from fire and smoke are complemented by small plates of raw brill, beef tartare, vegetables, pickles and the like. A solitary dessert of date and pistachio tart is destined to become one of the dishes of 2026. WM
Open now, impalasoho.com
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The James
Sydney, Australia
The Langham hotel, a short walk from Sydney Harbour, welcomes The James, a British restaurant from chef Sam Tuchband who has previously worked at Michelin-starred Trinity in London. The menu is brimming with quintessential British flavours given creative twists, such as Welsh Rarebit turned into pain perdu and a Ploughman’s condensed into a tartlet. Mains include lamb with leek and anchovy; short rib of beef; deer with brassicas and berries, as well as showstoppers to share such as Beef Wellington and a whole flounder with warm tartare sauce. The wine list pays homage to English sparkling wine with an array of Nyetimber cuvées dating back to 2010 before delving into Grandes Marques and Grower Champagnes. Almost 20 pages of still wines are sectioned off in various ways (by texture, country or grape variety) and contain bottles from Australia and classic European regions in current and older vintages. WM
Open now, srghospitality.com.au/venue/the-james
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Trattoria Maria
Sheffield, UK
Trattoria Maria, inspired by Italian and southern European cooking, is brought to you from the team behind the already very successful restaurant Bench in Sheffield. Located in the city centre, the new venture serves a menu traditionally split into antipasti followed by small pasta dishes and then mains, with dishes including sea bream crudo with blood orange and rosemary; wild garlic tagliatelle with egg yolk; and pork cotoletto with slow cooked fennel, capers and brown butter. The team here has pedigree when it comes to drinks and the Italian cocktail list includes three Negroni variants. Guests can also expect a selection of wine that mixes low-intervention and classic styles. WM
Open now, mariarestaurants.co.uk
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Saverne
New York, US
Chef Gabriel Kreuther has already won two Michelin stars for his eponymous restaurant in New York but Saverne is a ‘back to the basics’ follow-up in the form of a brasserie where much of the menu is cooked over a wood fire. Main courses at the new venture in Hudson Yards include black cod with green garbanzo beans and pimiento nage; crusted sea scallops with herbs, turnips and Riesling sauce; roast chicken with pomme purée with chicory and charred spring onion salsa; and beer braised pork belly with sauerkraut, Brussels sprout coleslaw and ginger jus. Eight signature cocktails are complemented by around 20 wines available by the glass, plus a longer list of bottles that’s designed to be accessible rather than ostentatious. However, this is still Manhattan after all, so Dom Perignon on Krug are on hand to be poured by the glass if you feel like pushing the boat out. WM
Open now, savernenyc.com
Cafe Kowloon
London, UK
A new Cantonese restaurant for the capital inspired by ‘the way Hong Kong likes to eat and drink’ has opened in London Fields. Cafe Kowloon is the latest venture from the owners of Mr Bao and Daddy Bao, popular Taiwanese restaurants in Peckham and Tooting respectively, focusing on punchy flavours and family-style dining. In that spirit, the menu is divided into snacks, sharing plates and sides, with the snacks including steamed scallops with glass noodles and XO; grilled curry fish ball skewers; and beef tendons. Prawn toast; steamed sea bass with seasoned soy sauce; steamed duck egg with yauh ja gwai; and cha siu (pork) collar, grapefruit and mustard leaves are amongst the sharing dishes. There are six signature cocktails on the drinks list, plus a low-intervention wine selection created by Theatre of Wine that includes 13 wines by the glass. WM
Open now, cafekowloon.co.uk
