Who’s Who: Everyone Featured on Our Best Restaurants Cover

On April 21, 2025, we gathered together 89 of San Diego’s Michelin stars, scrappy upstarts, bartenders, bakers, brewers, farmers, fishers, ranchers, innovators, scene-making lightning bolts at Leila in North Park for a cover shoot.

Captured by San Diego’s star food culture photographer James Tran, this is one helluva 2025 yearbook photo of our city’s food and drink culture. Check out our key below to spot some of the industry’s finest.

1. Chris Puffer – Puffer Malarkey Collective
2. Meghan Koll – Little Fox Cups & Cones
3. JoJo Ruiz – Lionfish/Temaki Sushi
4. Alex Carballo – Fox Point Farms
5. Accursio Lota – Trattoria Cori Pastificio
6. Randy Smerik – Solare Ristorante
7. Andrew Bachelier – Atelier Manna/ Chick & Hawk
8. Crystal White – Wayfarer Bread
9. Travis Swikard – Callie
10. Ludivine Ryon – Parfait Paris
11. Lani Gobaleza – Paru Tea
12. Amy Truong – Paru Tea
13. Flor Franco – Franco Group
14. Carmen Velasco-Favela – Mujeres Brew House
15. Lara Worm – Bivouac Ciderworks
16. Michael Esposito – Snake Oil Cocktail Co.
17. Dave Lively – Fall Brewing Company
18. Ananda Bareño – The Marine Room
19. Jeff Motch – Blind Lady Ale House/ Panama 66
20. Tanner Saraspe – Saraspe Seafoods
21. Richard Blais – Ember & Rye/ California English
22. Sienna Walters – Companion Bread
23. Tara Monsod – Animae/Le Coq
24. Wally Sadat – The Kebab Shop
25. Kate Garrett – Feeding San Diego
26. David Spatafore – Blue Bridge Hospitality
27. Guillaume Ryon – Parfait Paris
28. Tim Kolanko – Urban Kitchen Group
29. Suzanna Beltz – Oddish Wine
30. Ryan Thorsen – Mister A’s
31. Billy Beltz – Oddish Wine
32. Bertrand Hug – Mille Fleurs
33. Trey Foshee – Georges at the Cove
34. Claudette Zepeda – Leu Leu
35. Makoto Chino – Chino Farm
36. Anne-Marie Coulon – Little Lion Cafe
37. Nick Balsamo – Rosemarie’s Burgers
38. Mario Cassineri – Ciccia Osteria
39. Bob Harrington – Specialty Produce
40. Johnny Rivera – Hash House A Go Go/ Wolf in the Woods
41. Ted Smith – Starlite
42. Brandon Zanavich – The Friendly
43. Mike Reidy – The Fishery
44. Phillip Esteban – White Rice/Wildflour Delicatessen
45. Michael Soriano – Onairos Design
46. Beau du Bois – Roma Norte/Marisi/Puesto
47. Matthew Lyons – Tribute Pizza
48. Ryan Johnston – Gravity Heights/Catania
49. Ian Ward – Ponyboy
50. Joshua Becker — The Lion’s Share
51. Eric Bost – Jeune et Jolie/Campfire/ Wildland/Lilo
52. Torrey Lee – Cafe Moto
53. Kimberly Lee – Cafe Moto
54. Quinnton Austin – Louisiana Purchase
55. David Sim – Kingfisher
56. Roberto Alcocer – Valle
57. Eric Johnson – Happy Medium
58. Christian Siglin – Happy Medium
59. Brian Redzikowski – Kettner Exchange/ The Waverly
60. Niccolò Angius – Cesarina/Elvira
61. Cesarina Mezzoni – Cesarina/Elvira
62. Charleen Sandoval – Born and Raised
63. Kory Stetina — Kindred/Mothership/ Vulture/Dreamboat
64. Anchi Mei – MAKE Projects
65. Kevin Alvarado – Kinme Omakase/ Azuki Sushi
66. Jennifer Gilmore – Kitchens for Good
67. Daiki Endo – Menya Ultra
68. Brendan Huffman – Monarch Ocean Pub/ Wonderland Ocean Pub/ Social Syndicate
69. Anthony Schmidt – Anthony Schmidt
70. Sam the Cooking Guy – YouTuber/ Cookbook Author
71. Roddy Browning – Flying Pig Pub & Kitchen
72. Aaron Browning – Flying Pig Pub & Kitchen
73. Carene Thompson – Thompson Heritage Ranch
74. Steven Torres – Stella Jean’s/Pop Pie Co
75. Ty Thompson – Thompson Heritage Ranch
76. Drew Deckman – 31ThirtyOne/ Deckman’s en el Mogor
77. Noel Stehly – Stehly Farms Organics
78. Kelli Crosson – A.R. Valentien/The Lodge at Torrey Pines
79. Gan Suebsarakham – Stella Jean’s/Pop Pie Co
80. Brad Wise – Trust Restaurant Group
81. Alicia Perry – CH Projects
82. Peter Halmay – San Diego Fishermen’s Working Group
83. Chelsea Coleman – The Rose Wine Bar/ Mabel’s Gone Fishing
84. Brijet Myers – Little Italy Mercato

Not pictured but in attendance:

85. Charles Kaufman – Bread & Cie
86. Jon Sloan – Juniper and Ivy/ The Crack Shack
87. William Eick – Matsu
88. Davin Waite – Wrench & Rodent Seabasstropub/The Plot
89. Jessica Waite – Wrench & Rodent Seabasstropub/The Plot

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