Google Maps has introduced its first Fan-Favorite Dining List, highlighting popular restaurants and emerging food trends across 10 major cities worldwide. The inaugural list includes Atlanta, Chicago, London, Melbourne, Montréal, New York, San Francisco, Santiago, Seattle and Tokyo.
The collection uses activity on Google Maps to identify dining trends, drawing on restaurant reviews, ratings and aggregated requests for directions. Rather than presenting a ranking chosen by food critics, the list offers a data-based look at what people are eating and where they are choosing to dine.
Users can explore the collection online and save the featured lists directly in Google Maps to help plan future visits and food-focused trips.
Google Maps Data Reveals Growing Food Trends
The report highlights significant year-on-year increases in mentions of several popular foods across the selected cities.
In New York, mentions of frozen yogurt in reviews increased by 320%. Montréal recorded an 84% rise in cinnamon bun mentions, while references to mochi in Tokyo grew by 168%.
Matcha also gained popularity across nearly all 10 cities included in the report. Mentions increased by 82% in Chicago and 84% in Santiago, reflecting growing interest in the Japanese green tea ingredient.
Other notable changes involved crispy foods and traditional favourites. Mentions of dosa, a South Indian dish, rose by 136% in Seattle reviews. Chicago recorded an 82% increase in beef tallow mentions, while Atlanta saw beignet mentions climb by 77%.
These figures illustrate how Google Maps activity can offer insights into changing food preferences across different urban dining scenes.
How Google Maps Selected Its Favourite Dining Spots
Alongside food trends, Google’s list identifies dining establishments that users most frequently requested directions to in each city. It also highlights well-reviewed restaurants known for offering generous portions at relatively affordable prices.
The selection therefore combines information about restaurant popularity with review activity and customer interest. It is intended to help users discover places to eat rather than establish a definitive ranking of the world’s best restaurants.
According to Axios, the Seattle data covered the period from September 1, 2025, to August 31, 2026.
However, Google has not published detailed information about its selection thresholds, the weighting given to different data points or how it accounted for factors such as tourism, review manipulation and differences in Google Maps usage.
Why the List Is Not a Global Food Ranking
Although the Fan-Favorite Dining List covers several international cities, it does not represent every major food destination worldwide. No Indian city has been included in the first edition.
The findings should therefore be viewed as a snapshot of dining activity in the 10 selected locations, rather than a comprehensive assessment of global food preferences.
By using reviews, ratings and direction requests, Google Maps provides another way for users to discover popular restaurants and track changing food trends. The list may also help travellers identify dining spots that have attracted attention from local users and visitors.
Disclaimer
This article is intended for general informational purposes only and is based on the information provided about Google Maps’ first Fan-Favorite Dining List. The reported figures reflect activity within the specified locations and periods and should not be interpreted as a comprehensive measure of global food trends or restaurant quality. Restaurant popularity, reviews and user activity may change over time.