FOUND's best of 2025
Restaurants of the year, best new restaurant openings, getaways of the year
At FOUND, we capture the restaurant (and bar) scene via three primary lenses — short narrative pieces relaying our experiences dining in the field (First Person, First Word & FOUND Table), distilled lists of recommendations (The Nines), and interviews with the city’s movers, shakers, and industry insiders of taste (Routines).
FOUND is fascinated with what’s new, reporting regularly on just-opened spots before the rush. Just as interesting to us: those places that haven’t received their just acclaim, and old favorites that reward return visits. And while we will spend $350 per person for an extraordinary experience, we are equally at home at an exemplary neighborhood bistro.
Across the breadth of our coverage, we’re as focused on the room and the vibe — the way the restaurant makes you feel — as we are the food. We’re also obsessed with the movements and trends shaping the dining scene. And finally, our coverage reaches beyond the city and into weekend getaway markets (i.e., “surrounds”).
Here now (after a word from our sponsor), two Nines of our favorite restaurants of 2025 (restaurants of the year and best new openings) and a bonus list of our favorite getaways this year, with links through to our coverage.
CULTURE & LEISURE • FOUNDLISTING
New Year’s resolution: more fabulous nights out
Rhapsody in Blue and Ellington’s Nutcracker
Start 2026 with a bucket-list evening of jazz works for orchestra.
For one night only, hear Rhapsody in Blue as you’ve never heard it before. Joined by a full orchestra, the Marcus Roberts Trio transforms George Gershwin’s masterpiece through improvisation.
Conductor Andrew Grams leads New World Symphony in Duke Ellington’s swinging, jazz interpretation of The Nutcracker Suite, followed by Black, Brown and Beige, a landmark work that Wynton Marsalis has said “sits alone in the history of jazz.
→ Rhapsody in Blue (Miami Beach) • 1300 Biscayne Blvd • Sat 01/10 @ 8p [spon]
RESTAURANTS • The Nines
Restaurants of the year, 2025
