MICHELIN STARS
MICHELIN Stars are awarded to restaurants offering outstanding cooking, taking into account five universal criteria: the quality of the ingredients; the harmony of flavours; the mastery of techniques; the personality of the chef as expressed through their cuisine; and, just as importantly, consistency both across the entire menu and over time.
JOHN Chef’s Hall and Max Cekot Kitchen in Riga both retain their One-MICHELIN-Star status for 2026.
TWO NEW BIB GOURMANDS
The Bib Gourmand award highlights restaurants within the selection which offer good quality food at a great price. For 2026, one new restaurant joins The Guide directly with the award, and another is promoted from the Main Selection.
Tucked away just below street level, the newly added SMØR Bistro in Riga is a stylish spot, where warm terracotta shades and marble-topped tables set the tone. The menu sees classic Gallic recipes come together with international influences – in particular those from Denmark, with open smørrebrød sandwiches taking the lead at lunchtime. Sharing plates like whole turbot are on offer too – at prices as satisfying as the meals themselves.
Already part of the Main Selection, H.E. Vanadziņš in Cēsis offer more than meets the eye. Its traditional façade conceals a surprisingly contemporary room with a convivial atmosphere, while further through there’s a sizeable terrace hidden to the rear. The concise menu champions regional produce – a commitment that carries through to the bar, where house-made ingredients elevate both the soft drinks and the cocktails. Add wallet-friendly pricing and cosy bedrooms, and it has a great all-round appeal.
These join the three existing Bib Gourmand restaurants, who all retain their awards from last year: Milda, Riga, Shōyu, Riga, Snatch, Riga
TWO NEW RESTAURANTS JOIN THE MAIN SELECTION
27 restaurants feature in the Main Selection this year, with two joining The Guide for the first time.
Secreted away in a basement beneath a vaulted brick ceiling, The Catch in Riga is an energetic offshoot of Bib Gourmand awarded Snatch. The dimly lit main room overlooking the marble-topped sushi counter comes with plenty of atmosphere, but there’s also the option to slip behind a curtain into an even cosier space to dine. The wide-ranging menu showcases Japanese-inspired favourites, from delicate sushi and crisp tempura to warming bowls and flame-kissed dishes from the robata grill. The friendly, efficient team keep the pace smooth, while expertly mixed cocktails add to the buzz.
At the heart of Riga’s Central District sits Māsa, with its clean-lined interior of muted greys, soft beiges and pale wood – a calming palette that contrasts nicely with the restaurant’s upbeat, youthful energy. Carefully crafted cocktails and small plates to share provide the perfect opening, before giving way to more substantial main courses. Local ingredients might form the backbone of the menu, but its spirit reaches beyond Latvia, drawing on Mediterranean and occasionally Asian influences to create a dining experience that feels at once worldly and locally rooted.
GREEN STAR
The MICHELIN Green Star highlights restaurants at the forefront of the industry when it comes to their mindful practices – restaurants which offer dining experiences that combine culinary excellence with initiatives aimed at reducing their overall impact on the natural world. These restaurants are a source of inspiration both for keen foodies and the hospitality industry as a whole. Pavāru māja was first recognised at the Latvia Guide launch in 2023 and continues to uphold its mindful initiatives today.
SPECIAL AWARDS
While The MICHELIN Guide’s culinary distinctions are awarded to a restaurant as a whole, the MICHELIN Special Awards are given to outstanding individuals and teams who, thanks to their infinite passion and considerable skills, can make a restaurant experience unforgettable.
This year’s winners are:
Opening of the Year Award – Kaspars Barsukovs at SMØR Bistro in Riga.
SMØR means butter in Danish, and is a nod to both the chef’s time spent training in Scandinavia, as well as to his love of butter-based French cuisine. Having returned home to open this very likeable brasserie in the heart of the city, he’s now sharing the fruits of his time away by offering something a little different to the natives of Riga in the form of smørrebrød at lunch, followed by textbook Gallic dishes at dinner.
Young Chef Award – Timofei Monahhov at Seasons in Riga.
This sumptuous restaurant is a perfect match for the luxurious Grand Palace Hotel in which it sits. As the name implies, its menus follow the seasons closely, with creative Chef Timofei never liking the menu to stand still. He possesses a great understanding of his craft and treats his ingredients with care and respect, bringing classical flavours into the present day. The world’s greatest painters – such as Mark Rothko – inspire him, so dishes are unsurprisingly full of colour and visually striking.
Service Award – Sergejs Šiporovs and the Team at The Catch in Riga.
This Japanese izakaya really puts the buzz into a night out, thanks partly to its tempting cocktails, subtle lighting and cosy vibe, but mainly to its warm and friendly service team, who make dining here a pleasure from the moment guests step through the door to the moment they leave. The dishes are perfectly paced and delivered with care, and the whole experience flows effortlessly from course to course.
Sommelier Award – Ivars Kalninš at Riviera in Riga.
This long-standing brasserie comes with a sun-kissed Mediterranean feel, and the menu echoes the same sense of warmth and simplicity. To accompany, is a comprehensive wine list comprising over 1,000 bottles from around the globe, making it one of the most complete cellars in the city. Ivars isn’t one to keep his knowledge to himself, so unusually he’s shared his expertise with the whole of the service team, meaning that no matter how busy the restaurant gets, every guest is always well advised.
THE 2025 MICHELIN GUIDE LATVIA AT A GLANCE
34 restaurants recommended in total, three of which are new, including:
2 One-MICHELIN-Star restaurants
5 MICHELIN Bib Gourmand restaurants
The Latvian restaurant selection is compiled by the full-time MICHELIN Guide Inspectors, who make their recommendations based on anonymous lunches and dinners.
The full MICHELIN Guide Latvia 2026 restaurant selection is available on The MICHELIN Guide website and on the free MICHELIN Guide app, where users can research restaurants via their locations, cuisine types or additional features.
The Latvia restaurant selection is joined by The MICHELIN Guide selection of hotels, which features the most unique and exciting places to stay in Latvia and throughout the world. Every hotel in The Guide is chosen for its extraordinary style, service and personality – with options for all budgets – and each hotel can be booked through The MICHELIN Guide. The selection for Latvia features the country’s most spectacular hotels, like Riga’s Grand Poet Hotel and SPA by Semarah, a stately 19th-century building whose lavishly decorated interior is styled on a postmodern Belle Époque grandeur, and the A22 Hotel, the former American Embassy that’s now home to a super-stylish residence with its own MICHELIN-Starred restaurant.
Dining and Cooking