What Changed in Charleston's Restaurant Rankings: November 2026
New #1s, the biggest climbers and what changed in the November 2026 update
November adds the 2026 Michelin Guide, a new Rooftop & Waterfront Dining category, and fresh Google and Yelp ratings for nearly every restaurant. Business Dinner and Casual Local Favorite are now ranked entirely from the data, and restaurant pages now show month-by-month rank history.
What's new this month
- Michelin Guide American South 2026. The October 21 guide is now in the rankings: stars for Malagón, Vern's and Wild Common, Bib Gourmands for Leon's, Palmira and Rivayat, and new Recommended listings for Cane Pazzo and Merci.
- Rooftop & Waterfront Dining. A new ranking of restaurants with a full menu and a rooftop or waterside table, built from what critics and local guides say specifically about rooftop and waterfront dining. Bars and lounges without a full menu aren't included.
- Business Dinner and Casual Local Favorite are fully data-ranked. Last month these two categories kept September's members while we added sources. From November they are ranked like every other occasion category: on coverage of that specific occasion first, then overall quality.
- Restaurant pages and neighborhood guides. Every ranked restaurant with at least two independent sources now has a profile with the reasons behind their rank and their month-by-month rank history. New neighborhood pages list the best restaurants in Downtown, West Ashley, Mount Pleasant, North Charleston and James Island.
- Ratings and map pins refreshed. Google ratings now come straight from Google for almost every restaurant, alongside Tripadvisor and Yelp, and nearly every ranked restaurant now has a verified pin on the map.
New at #1
- Business Dinner: Halls Chophouse (up from #9)
- Rooftop & Waterfront: Fleet Landing (new category)
- Mexican: Maya del Sol Kitchen (up from #4)
- Casual Local Favorite: Moe's Crosstown Tavern (new to the top 10)
Biggest climbers
- Pelato: #15 → #5 in Best New
- The Royal American: #14 → #5 in Casual Local Favorite
- Halls Chophouse: #9 → #1 in Business Dinner
- Riva Mare: #14 → #7 in Best New
- Pelato: #14 → #7 in Italian
- Rivayat Creative Indian Cuisine: #10 → #4 in Best New
See the November 2026 rankings → · Every move this month · All monthly updates · How TasteSignal ranks restaurants