MD Restaurant Makes Elite List Of America’s Best By New York Times

One Maryland restaurant is included in The Restaurant List 2026, an elite compilation of the 50 best restaurants in America by The New York Times.

A 16-person scouting team traveled across the country for the list, eating everywhere from small-town Wisconsin to downtown Manhattan. The critics made reservations, waited in lines and arrived unannounced, paying for their meals and accepting no freebies.

Included from Maryland is Montgomery County's Chef’s Counter at Burnt Hill Farm.

The restaurant is located at 25001 Burnt Hill Road in Clarksburg.

The Times singled out chef Tae Strain's ability to prepare locally-sourced ingredients, noting that each dish was "presented with Asian touches on ceramic dishware made from clay dug at the farm."

"On a late spring day, as a colorful sunset receded into dusk, gorgeous dishes arrived in an elegant procession, the compositions precise and the flavors pure," reads the Times' review.

"Sweet scallops and rockfish arrived in a complex miso broth that required spooning up every drop, while richly scented, dry-aged duck with soy-glazed maitake and local mandarin was an intricate study in contrasts."

Each of the reviewed courses was paired with a Burnt Hill wine, according to the Times.

Honorable D.C. Mentions

• Rye Bunny
  New American cuisine
  1827 Adams Mill Road NW
• Albi
  Palestinian cuisine
  1346 4th St. SE

The restaurants aren’t ranked, and none appeared on a previous edition of the annual list. The selections include places that opened only weeks ago, as well as restaurants that have served customers for decades.

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