New York Times Restaurant Stars
The New York Times Company · New York, NY, USA
AG Process Grade
Grade A See the Ranking rubric →The NYT star system scores strongly because it rests on firsthand, independently conducted critic visits (not self-reported or voted data), is insulated from advertiser influence and pay-for-placement per the paper's published ethics standards, and carries no sponsorship-mixing or licensing-fee issues. It loses points mainly on reproducibility/verifiability (a single critic's qualitative judgment cannot be independently checked) and on some erosion of methodological stability from the 2025 restructuring that introduced multiple critics, video reviews, and reduced anonymity (CNN Business, June 11 2025; Forbes, June 30 2025; Star Tribune coverage of the new critic's rating approach).
Founded 1851 · The New York Times Company · HQ New York, NY, USA · Food & Beverage · Entry undisclosed
The New York Times rates New York City restaurants on a zero-to-four-star scale assigned by a designated chief restaurant critic after multiple anonymous, NYT-paid visits, with published definitions for each star level. In 2025 the paper restructured the role, naming new critics and introducing video reviews, with reduced emphasis on strict anonymity.
Profile data
| Organizer | The New York Times Company |
| Location | New York, NY, USA |
| Entry fee | Undisclosed |
| Cost to receive award | Undisclosed |
| Winner rate | Undisclosed |
| Selection authority | Self-nomination |
| Data confidence | ● Fully documented |
| Official site | https://www.cnn.com/2025/06/11/media/new-york-times-restaurant-critics-dining-video-reviews(nofollow) |
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Industry Alternatives
Other rankings in the same industry (Food & Beverage), graded A or B -- real judging, disclosed criteria, and genuine selectivity.