{"id":38470,"date":"2026-09-30T22:44:39","date_gmt":"2026-09-30T22:44:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/us\/38470\/"},"modified":"2026-09-30T22:44:39","modified_gmt":"2026-09-30T22:44:39","slug":"johinna-recognized-as-one-of-the-nations-best-new-restaurants-of-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/us\/38470\/","title":{"rendered":"Johin’na recognized as one of the nation’s best new restaurants of 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"johin'na\"The lobby of Johin\u2019na has a prominent light-up sign of the restaurant logo, two aquariums and Japanese parasols lining the ceiling. (Mary Helene Hall \/ Bham Now)<\/p>\n

Yelp has recognized a rising star in Birmingham\u2019s food scene as one of the best new restaurants of 2026 across the country.<\/p>\n

Johin\u2019na was named the best new restaurant in Alabama and it was recognized among the top 25 new restaurants in the entire U.S.<\/p>\n

The restaurant first opened their doors on 2nd Avenue N in August 2025. The upscale spot combines bold global flavors, Southern soul and a sleek, modern aesthetic that makes it equally suited for date night, birthdays or just a well-earned night out.<\/p>\n

Why was Johin\u2019na selected?<\/p>\n

Yelp turned to community reviews to help finalize this year\u2019s list. And those reviews pointed to several stand out dishes on Johin\u2019na\u2019s menu including:<\/p>\n

Collard Green Gyoza<\/p>\n

Bham Roll<\/p>\n

Southern Fried Chicken Karaage<\/p>\n

Teppanyaki-grilled ribeye<\/p>\n

\u201cExecutive chef Ashley Jackson and her sister, Amber Diamond \u2014 daughters of owner Shun Love \u2014 are wowing diners with their izakaya-style (small-plate) Japanese dishes, which have a fun, unexpected infusion of Southern flair.\u201d<\/p>\n

Yelp<\/p>\n

The reviews also pointed to the restaurant\u2019s Sunday brunch options and a chef-led omakase experience which requires reservations.<\/p>\n

Of course, if you\u2019ve been to Johin\u2019na, you\u2019ll know there is one feature that is hard to miss: the LED-lit cherry blossom tree in the main dining room.<\/p>\n

\"johin'na\"The focal point of Johin\u2019na is the Sakura Room, a massive light-up tree in the center of the dining room. (Mary Helene Hall \/ Bham Now)<\/p>\n

How you can try Johin\u2019na<\/p>\n

If you haven\u2019t made it downtown to try it for yourself, we recommend making a reservation to secure your table. The restaurant also has valet parking.<\/p>\n

Some of our favorite things on the dinner menu include:<\/p>\n

Kimchi fried rice<\/p>\n

Crispy squid<\/p>\n

Kyoto Heat Roll<\/p>\n

Spicy garlic edamame<\/p>\n

Pretty much everything on the menu has been highlighted by Yelp community reviews so you probably can\u2019t go wrong if you want to just try a little bit of everything.<\/p>\n

\u201cChef Amber suggested the Ecchi Martini with tequila and it was the perfect cocktail. We started things off sharing the Crispy Brussels Sprouts and Collard Green Gyoza, [which] was a pleasant surprise and my fave. We ordered the [Peach-Glazed] Salmon Teriyaki, Short Ribs, and I had the [Hot Stone Miso] Cod. My only complaint is I wanted more!\u201d<\/p>\n

Jessica J., Yelp featured review<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s what you need to know before visiting:<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The lobby of Johin\u2019na has a prominent light-up sign of the restaurant logo, two aquariums and Japanese parasols lining the ceiling. (Mary Helene Hall \/ Bham Now) Yelp has recognized a rising star in Birmingham\u2019s food scene as one of the best new restaurants of 2026 across the country. Johin\u2019na was named the best new<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":38471,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[25],"tags":[4247,4245,4243,4246,4244],"class_list":["post-38470","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-alabama","tag-alabama","tag-alabama-dining","tag-alabama-food","tag-alabama-grocery-stores","tag-alabama-restaurants"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/vive.im\/@dc\/117362416882085766","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38470","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=38470"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38470\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/38471"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=38470"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=38470"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=38470"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}