3 Triangle restaurants named among world's most luxurious by Forbes
Three Triangle restaurants have earned spots on the Forbes Star Awards list, one of the world’s highest fine dining honors. Herons at Cary’s Umstead Hotel claimed the top Five Star rating for the 14th consecutive year.
FULL STORY: 3 Triangle restaurants listed by Forbes as world’s most luxurious places to eat
Here are key takeaways:
- Herons at The Umstead Hotel in Cary was the only North Carolina restaurant to earn Forbes’ Five Star rating, its highest honor. Inspectors praised the elegant dining room and a soundproof open kitchen that “mesmerizes guests.”
- The Fearrington House earned Four Stars, with inspectors highlighting its rural elegance and noting that at dusk “you’ll hear nothing but trickling fountains and crickets.”
- Fairview Dining Room at the Washington Duke Hotel in Durham earned a Recommended rating, rounding out the Triangle’s honorees.
- Forbes urged diners at Herons not to skip dessert, citing whimsical creations like a winter pear dish with maple-parsnip ice cream and a Videri dark chocolate ganache with smoked milk chocolate ice cream.
- Worldwide, more than 2,400 restaurants and hotels received a Forbes rating this year. Six North Carolina restaurants made the list in total.
The summary points above were compiled with the help of AI tools and edited by journalists. The full story in the link at top was reported, written and edited entirely by journalists.
This story was originally published June 10, 2026 at 12:00 PM with the headline "3 Triangle restaurants named among world's most luxurious by Forbes."
Drew Jackson
The News & Observer