The Australian Good Food Guide has unveiled its prestigious Chef Hat awards for 2025, with 21 Canberra restaurants earning a spot on the celebrated list.
AGFG has awarded Chef Hats to outstanding chefs across Australia since 1982, with inspectors dining anonymously to choose the winners.
Amongst the list of Canberra’s Chef Hat recipients is Pavilion Dining, the new restaurant at Pialligo Estate. They were awarded a score of 14, the equal-highest of any restaurant in the ACT.
The scoring works on a scale from 12 to 19 Chef Hats, the awards recognise the top 1% of restaurants in the country. Hereโs what each Chef Hat level means:
- 12 to 13 Hats: Great restaurants in their category โ Commended
- 14 to 15 Hats: Excellent food โ Worth a stop on the way
- 16 to 17 Hats: Outstanding quality โ Worth a detour
- 18 to 19 Hats: Exceptional food and wine, internationally renowned โ Worth a special trip
The ACT had 21 recipients ranging from 12 to 14 Chef Hats:
| Chef Hats | Restaurant | Cuisine | Location |
| 14 | Les Bistronomes | French | Campbell |
| 14 | Pavilion Dining | Modern Australian | Pialligo |
| 14 | The Boat House | Modern Australian | Barton |
| 14 | Otis Dining Hall | Modern Australian | Kingston |
| 14 | Pilot | Modern Australian | Ainslie |
| 14 | Raku Dining | Japanese | City |
| 13 | Vincent | Modern Australian | Barton |
| 13 | Onzieme | Modern Australian | Kingston |
| 13 | Italian & Sons | Italian | Braddon |
| 13 | Mu | Japanese | City |
| 13 | Rebel Rebel | Modern Australian | City |
| 13 | Bar Rochford | Modern Australian | City |
| 13 | Such and Such | Modern Australian | City |
| 12 | Courgette | European | City |
| 12 | Corella | Modern Australian | Braddon |
| 12 | Rakkas Restaurant | Turkish | Kingston |
| 12 | Waters Edge | Modern Australian | Parkes |
| 12 | Pomegranate | Mediterranean | Kingston |
| 12 | Molto Italian | Italian | Kingston |
| 12 | Monster Kitchen & Bar | Vegetarian | City |
| 12 | Inka | Japanese | City |
There were also a number of restaurants in nearby regions, Capital Country & Southern Highlands and the NSW South Coast:
| Chef Hats | Restaurant | Cuisine | Location |
| 15 | Eshcalot | Modern Australian | Berrima |
| 14 | Grazing | Modern Australian | Gundaroo |
| 14 | Mimosa Wines Restaurant | Modern Australian | Bermagui |
| 13 | Paste Australia | Thai | Mittagong |
| 13 | Hoderns Restaurant | Modern Australian | Bowral |
| 13 | Bangalay Dining | Modern Australian | Shoalhaven Heads |
| 13 | Valentina | Modern Australian | Merimbula |
| 12 | The River Moruya | European | Moruya |
| 12 | The Milton Hotel | Modern Australian | Milton |
