Thanks to readers like you, tens of thousands of nominations came in for the 2026 Orlando Sentinel Foodie Awards, and now, the results have been tallied.
The top-three picks have been determined, and the task falls back to the readers to decide which will take the title in each of 50 categories, from burgers and wings to driveworthy things.
And a bunch of other things that are delicious but don’t rhyme.
2026 has been an interesting year already, with local talent in the mix for this year’s James Beard Foundation Awards (woo-hoo to Good Salt Restaurant Group’s chef/partner Wendy Lopez, Cedars’ chef Toni Elkhouri and the team at Lakeland’s Born and Bread Bakehouse!), a Ramen Rumble ultimate champion to celebrate (congrats to chef Kevin Phanhvilay of Sticky Rice Lao Street food!) and scads of new and new-to-me-or-you restaurants to be discovered as we dine around a city filled with incredible bites.
But even with new and exciting things happening, venues from the food truck parks to the fine dining arena are competing for dining dollars that are getting stretched thinner all the time. They’re spending more to do it, too.
You can help them all by finding time, once a day, now through Feb. 26, to vote and give them a boost when it comes to visibility.
Hit up OrlandoSentinel.com/FoodieAwards.
Last year’s Reader Picks were, IMO, the best ever. I can’t wait to see what you recommend this year and taste what the folks at the new winning venues are cooking up.
Quick overview
The top three restaurants in each category — those with the most nominations — have moved onto the voting round, which opened today and will end at 5 p.m. on Feb. 26.
Winners will be announced on March 6 online and in the Calendar section.
Vote for your favorites once a day.
Restaurants: Tell your followers.
Foodies: Tell your friends.
Thanks in advance for your participation in making this year’s roster the most voted on yet — and for helping to keep our city delicious.
VOTE HERE:Â Â OrlandoSentinel.com/FoodieAwards