Condé Nast’s Traveller magazine in collaboration with Zomato’s District announced the results of the Best Restaurants list on Tuesday Sept 29 and along with it listed the Top 50 restaurants of India 2025. This is the sixth edition of the awards and Condé Nast curated an extensive shortlist from across the country. According to them,”100 jury members, comprising India’s foremost tastemakers, undergo two phases of voting to come up with the 50 best restaurants in the country” and rankings are decided by jurors who are food critics, chefs, writers, fashion designers, artists, curators and others who are deemed food connoisseurs. Jurors are screened for conflict of interest so that the results are fair and unbiased.
Mumbai nabbed the most spots with 13 rankings while Delhi and Bengaluru followed, tying at 9 each. This year Bengaluru really stood with its diversity in food options, reflecting the ever-evolving gastronomic tastes of the city. The restaurants on the list either featured international cuisines, experimental surrealist bars, farm-to-table spots, and cult fast food spots.
Bangaloreans react to the rankings
Bangaloreans had an interesting reaction to this announcement however and it is not something one might expect. On the r/bangalore subreddit, when the list was posted with the caption, “I have been to 2 of these 9 in Bangalore (a couple of years back), but I wouldn’t have thought either would make it to THE top restaurants!” The subreddit was in an uproar.
The top rated comment on this post called the list “Paid listing” with 577 upvotes. While another questioned the parameters which were used to judge the eateries. The user commented, “My favourite question when I see such lists. Who decided this? Based on what parameters?” and was responded to rather crudely by another who said, “Parameters are the list should be able to fit inside the a**. Because that’s where it’s pulled from.” Both comments had upwards of 150 upvotes.
A user who is allegedly a hospitality sector insider commented that these lists weren’t authentic and only a way for investors to be happy. “As a person who works in hospitality industry these can be bought so let’s just say it made the investors happy.” While other Bangaloreans claimed that they had never dined at nor heard of these places. “As an average Bangalorean I haven eaten in any of these restaurants.”, “Haven’t heard of a single restaurant in this list.”
User NoMedicine3572 eloquently commented on the exclusive nature of these spots. “Is this a paid list? Almost all the places mentioned are fancy restaurants promoting mostly foreign cuisines like Korean. What parameters are they even considering? There are so many good restaurants that aren’t included. Also, how do they validate taste? In India, food preferences vary widely by region; what one group enjoys, another may not. To me, this looks more like an advertisement, and I wouldn’t be surprised if many of them paid to be featured.” There were many who also complained about the lack of local, accessible spots.
On the flip side
There were some who defended the list claiming that the list was for fine dining spots rather than a tool for representation. “No, these are definitely not paid promotions or listings. I can confirm this because I personally know a few of the restaurants on the list quite well. That said, it’s important to understand the context: most of these places have an average spend of ~₹2,500 (or more) per person without alcohol, so they fall into the luxury dining category. Conde Nast Traveller, which organizes these awards, is a luxury & lifestyle travel magazine, and their focus is naturally on fine dining rather than casual or everyday restaurants. So it’s less about representing what’s popular or accessible for everyone, and more about showcasing what’s considered “top-end” in the industry and these are top-end when it comes to fine dining in India.
However, such defences were few and the majority of the comments under the post pointed out the various flaws in the listing; from the high-end nature of the restaurants, to the lack of local food eateries which could give some fine dining spots a run for their money, to claims that some restaurants listed were only “average”. Though the reactions to the list were swift and ruthless, the freedom of speech is a right granted to every person and redditors made sure to make complete use of it.
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