Three Restaurants Win New Grand Awards in 2025

Exceptional wine lists are a testament to the dedication of wine directors, sommeliers and restaurant owners. Crafting an exceptional wine list demands diligent effort—balancing culinary pairings, pricing strategies, ambiance and diverse customer preferences. A restaurant must demonstrate unwavering commitment to achieve the highest standards in wine offerings, cellar management and service.

This year, three dining destinations have accomplished just that, earning Wine Spectator’s Grand Award—the world’s highest honor for a restaurant wine program—and the global recognition that comes with it.

Joining the 94 other current holders of this prestigious award, the three restaurants that make up the Grand Award “Class of 2025” offer exceptional wine lists, unrivaled service and flawless presentation:

• A classic Parisian bistro, Le Bon Georges mixes casual cuisine with an anything-but-casual wine list.

• Selby’s, a contemporary neighborhood restaurant in the affluent Silicon Valley town of Atherton, gives the California-based Bacchus Management Group its third Grand Award.

• Elevating Southern hospitality with great wine, Soby’s in Greenville marks the first Grand Award winner in South Carolina.

[article-img-container][src=2025-06/grand-award-2025-selbys-somm-pouring_062025_1600.jpg] [credit= (Alanna Hale)] [alt= A sommelier pouring wine for guests in the dining room of Grand Award winner Selby’s][end: article-img-container]

“Achieving the Grand Award is the pinnacle of a 28-year vision for us at Soby’s,” wine director John Mitchell told Wine Spectator. “We take immense pride in being included with the greatest wine programs and restaurants in the world!”

Mitchell is especially proud of being the first Grand Award winner in South Carolina: “We are so excited to be able to share this monumental accolade with our city. Bringing the Wine Spectator Grand Award to the city I am from, after immersing myself in wine for the past 25 years, is like summiting Mt. Everest.”

The Grand Award is presented to restaurants that show relentless dedication to the quality of their wine programs, typically offering at least 1,000 selections and the highest level of service. (Learn more about the awards criteria.)

Bacchus Management Group partner Andrew Green said, “Winning this award is incredibly humbling and means so much to us. It recognizes the time, effort and passion that the team has put into building and maintaining a world-class wine program.” Selby’s joins The Village Pub and Spruce as the group’s third Grand Award winner. “This award not only reflects the efforts of the wine team, it also celebrates the restaurant’s commitment to culinary excellence and hospitality,” Green added. “These elements working in concert enabled us to earn our third Grand Award.”

[article-img-container][src=2025-06/grand-award-2025-sobys-wine-team_062025_1600.jpg] [credit= (William Crooks)] [alt= Three members of the Soby’s wine team—from left, sommelier Robert Chambers, assistant wine director Cait Bryan and sommelier Matt Seitz—in a dining-room booth][end: article-img-container]

In 1981, the inaugural year for Wine Spectator’s Restaurant Awards program, the magazine honored 13 restaurants with Grand Awards based on their extraordinary wine lists. The goal of the awards was to both recognize and encourage excellence in wine programs at a time when few restaurants devoted significant attention to them. Since then, the awards have grown significantly, and the addition of three new Grand Award winners this year brings the 2025 total to 97. Today, the Restaurant Awards recognize restaurants across three levels: the Award of Excellence, the Best of Award of Excellence and the Grand Award.

At Le Bon Georges, owner Benoît Duval-Arnould described winning the Grand Award as a dream come true. “Some years ago when I started, I was quiet, but I admired my peers for their great work and achievements.” He noted that “the path of learning is still long and endless. We will continue with love and dedication to always please our guests and develop our wine knowledge and collection. I want Le Bon Georges to be an exceptional place forever!”

Detailed profiles of the three new Grand Award winners can be found in the Grand Awards Class of 2025 section of WineSpectator.com.

The full list of 2025 Restaurant Award winners will be available on the website on June 23, when the free Restaurant Search will be updated with all of the year’s honorees. In addition, the website features an extensive collection of articles, including Q&As with leading sommeliers, chefs and restaurateurs, roundups of where to drink well and restaurant-related news.

All award winners will be featured in the Aug. 31 issue of Wine Spectator (available on newsstands July 15). Along with the full profiles of the new Grand Award winners, the issue also includes in-depth reporting on the latest restaurant trends and a look at late chef Charlie Trotter’s legacy.

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