Seventeen Alabama venues earned recognition in Wine Spectator’s 2026 Restaurant Awards – including two related businesses in Coastal Alabama that recently launched their own wine brand.
The 17 recognized restaurants are spread across the state, with the biggest concentration in the Birmingham area.
Wine Spectator’s awards recognize 4,012 dining destinations worldwide. Out of those, 2,083 received the Award of Excellence; 1,830 received the Best of Award of Excellence; and 99 received the Grand Award.
While none of the Alabama venues received the Grand Award, three received the Best of Award of Excellence designation: Acre and the 1856 Culinary Residence in Auburn and The Hope Farm in Fairhope.
Wine Spectator says its awards “recognize restaurants whose wine lists offer interesting selections, are appropriate to their cuisine and appeal to a wide range of wine lovers.” The list includes information on “wine strengths,” cuisine styles offered, and pricing.
The Alabama honorees:
Huntsville – Char Restaurant, Domaine SouthBirmingham area – Bellini’s Ristorante & Bar (Birmingham), Little Betty Steak Bar (Mountain Brook), Ocean (Birmingham), Perry’s Steakhouse & Grille (Birmingham), Seasons 52 (Birmingham)Tuscaloosa – FortéAuburn/Opelika – Acre, 1856 Culinary Residence, Botanic, The DepotMontgomery – Ravello Ristorante, Vintage YearCoastal Alabama – The Hope Farm (Fairhope), little bird (Fairhope), Vilaggio Grille (Orange Beach)
The Hope Farm and little bird are both part of the Deep Roots Restaurant Group. While it wasn’t mentioned by Wine Spectator, the group announced the debut of its first custom wine, little bird Pinot Noir, in May.
According to the Deep Roots group, little bird Pinot Noir was developed in a partnership with the Left Coast Estate vineyard and winery in Oregon, using “a robust blend of grapes sourced from three distinct vineyards on the Left Coast Estate property in Oregon’s Willamette Valley.”
Deep Roots co-owners Robert and Bentley Evans, COO and Wine Director Will Jones and little bird co-owner/executive chef Bill Briand made several trips to Oregon before settling on a final blend. They describe the result as “a stunning yet approachable Pinot Noir with tasting notes of black cherry, ripe strawberry, clove, violet, and cocoa — a profile that pairs naturally with little bird’s signature dishes, including their pork belly appetizer, stuffed quail entrée, and lighter options like golden beets salad.”
“We’ve been incredibly proud to build a thoughtful wine program at The Hope Farm, and creating a custom wine felt like a natural next step for us,” Jones said in an announcement of the wine’s release. The label features the work of Fairhope artist Maggie Stickney.
Little bird Pinot Noir is available at The Hope Farm and at little bird. Extensive information on Wine Spectator’s 2026 Restaurant Awards can be found at www.winespectator.com and in an issue of Wine Spectator magazine due to hit newsstands on July 21.
Dining and Cooking