The honor represents yet another remarkable milestone in what has become one of the fastest and most unusual success stories in modern American dining. For those who follow the restaurant industry closely, Lilo's ascent has been nothing short of astonishing. Opened in April 2025 by restaurateur John Resnick and executive chef Eric Bost, the intimate 24-seat tasting-menu restaurant earned a Michelin Recommendation just 27 days after opening and was awarded a Michelin star approximately ten weeks after welcoming its first guests.
That timeline was extraordinary. Michelin stars are generally associated with consistency, refinement, and excellence demonstrated over time. In fact, Michelin itself identifies "consistency between visits" as one of the guide's core evaluation criteria. Yet Lilo received one of dining's highest honors less than three months into operation, prompting discussion throughout the culinary world about whether the guide was making an exception based on the pedigree of the team behind the project.
At the time, a Michelin spokesperson acknowledged the guide had previous strong experiences with Bost and his team at nearby Jeune et Jolie, which earned a Michelin star under Bost's leadership in 2021. While Michelin has never suggested Lilo received special treatment, industry observers noted that awarding a newly opened restaurant a star so quickly is exceedingly rare.
Now, less than a year later, Robb Report has effectively validated Michelin's confidence. In naming Lilo the best new restaurant in America, Robb Report's digital director and culinary editor Jeremy Repanich described the restaurant as "a love letter to fine dining and California," praising not only the food but the complete experience. He highlighted Bost's background working under culinary legends Alain Ducasse and Guy Savoy, the restaurant's warm hospitality, thoughtful nonalcoholic beverage program, and dishes that celebrate Southern California ingredients while drawing inspiration from coastal regions around the world.
"The food itself," Repanich wrote, "celebrates local ingredients while taking inspiration from coastal regions in France, Japan, and everywhere in between. Despite the global influence, Lilo feels like a true expression of Southern California in restaurant form."
The recognition is especially meaningful for Bost, whose previous restaurant, Auburn in Los Angeles, was originally selected for Robb Report's annual best new restaurants list in 2020. Before the rankings were published, however, the COVID-19 pandemic devastated the restaurant industry and Auburn permanently closed, denying the chef what many believed would have been a defining national accolade. Instead, that recognition arrives six years later through a project that many now view as the culmination of Bost's career.
Lilo is the latest collaboration between Bost and Resnick, who has quietly built one of the most influential restaurant groups in San Diego County. Together, the pair oversee Michelin-starred Jeune et Jolie, the acclaimed live-fire restaurant Campfire, and Wildland, the all-day bakery, restaurant, and bar that shares a building with Lilo.
Hidden behind twelve-foot walls at the rear of the Wildland property on Roosevelt Street, Lilo was intentionally designed to feel intimate and immersive. Guests begin the evening outdoors with a series of canapés before moving inside for a multi-course tasting menu served around an open kitchen. The experience concludes back outdoors with desserts and final beverages around a fire pit.
The restaurant's name itself reflects the project's philosophy. Lilo (pronounced LIE-low) comes from The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows and refers to a friendship that can remain dormant for years before immediately resuming as though no time has passed. The concept may be rooted in nostalgia and reconnection, but its impact on the California dining scene has been immediate.
The Robb Report distinction arrives just days before Michelin hosts its 2026 California awards ceremony in San Diego. Industry insiders have increasingly speculated that Lilo could become one of the rare restaurants to earn a second Michelin star within a relatively short period after opening. If that happens, it would represent yet another chapter in a story that has already defied conventional expectations.
For decades, San Diego's fine dining scene struggled to earn national recognition alongside culinary powerhouses like Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York, and Chicago. Lilo's emergence, and the speed with which it has accumulated accolades, suggests that perception may be changing. Whether one agrees with Michelin's unusually swift endorsement or not, Robb Report's ranking leaves little doubt that one of America's most influential food publications believes the inspectors got it right.
Just fourteen months after opening, a tiny 24-seat restaurant tucked behind another restaurant in Carlsbad has been named the best new restaurant in the United States. That is not only a remarkable achievement for Eric Bost and John Resnick, it may also be one of the strongest signals yet that San Diego's dining scene has entered a new era.
Lilo is located at 2571 Roosevelt Street in Carlsbad. For more information, visit restaurantlilo.com.
Originally published on June 16, 2026.