Yelp's Top Restaurant Of 2025 Discusses The Key To Its Success – Exclusive

Every year, Yelp publishes a list of the Top 100 Places to Eat to showcase some of the most buzzworthy restaurants nationwide that Yelp reviewers love. This year, the top spot was given to Holbox, a Mexican marisquería (seafood restaurant) in Los Angeles, which is owned by Mexican-born chef Gilberto Cetina and opened in 2017. Holbox — pronounced "hole-bosh" and named after an island of Mexico's northern Yucatán Peninsula — merges casual with fine dining. Located in a food hall with a walk-up ordering system, this restaurant showcases high-quality ingredients that are both fresh and local. There's an extensive menu for diners to choose from — featuring the likes of ceviches, tacos, and other entrees. The restaurant also offers weekly eight-course tasting menu dinners on Thursdays and Fridays.

In 2024, Holbox earned a Michelin star, becoming the first Mexican marisquería in the U.S. to do so. In addition to achieving arguably the highest achievement in the restaurant industry, Holbox is extremely popular with diners. Based on thousands of reviews, it has nearly a perfect score on Yelp—4.8 out of 5.

In an interview with Daily Meal, Cetina, a James Beard Award finalist, discussed the restaurant's success and credited his "incredible team," including not only the chefs at Holbox but also the fishermen and sellers who provide the fresh ingredients. Working together, Cetina and his team can enact the restaurant's mission: "To blend the rich culinary traditions of Mexico with the vibrant ingredients of Southern California, creating a harmonious combination of flavors that celebrates both worlds."

Gilberto Cetina named his restaurant after a Mexican island — but not just any island. Cetina has a very personal connection to the island of Holbox, as it's where he would spend summers fishing and diving during his childhood. With the restaurant, he developed the food to evoke his own memories of those summers and to remind diners of a sense of home. "Holbox has always been a love letter to Mexican cuisine and my heritage," he said.

Cetina also wanted to showcase the specific ingredients encompassing coastal Mexican cuisine, such as fresh sea urchins and spiny lobsters, which he said are "often overlooked as part of Mexican dishes, [but] staples in many coastal cities." He continued, "The first cuisine I learned to cook was indigenous Mexican cuisine, and it will always be the foundation for my perspective as a chef."

When he was younger, Cetina had no intentions of becoming a chef but fell in love with it when he began helping out his father at his parents' restaurant, Chichén Itza, which acted as his informal training.

The chef said, "I am proud of my humble training and how I have grown that into two restaurants that are able to support a team of 80 people strong. I hope the next generation of chefs feels inspired to embrace their unique journey — whether it includes informal training or a casual restaurant setting — and pursue their own style of cooking without limitations."

The Los Angeles community loves Holbox, and the restaurant is sending the love and support right back. After the LA wildfires broke out in January, Holbox provided meals to both the first responders and those who had to evacuate their homes. Cetina and the team also donated some of their proceeds to World Central Kitchen, an organization started by José Andrés dedicated to food relief efforts. Holbox joins the likes of other restaurants helping the cause, such as the LA pizza shops feeding first responders. "Our LA community has displayed an incredible showing of resilience by coming together to support first responders and those displaced. Food has always been a cornerstone of community, and it's heartwarming to see so many stepping up to lend a helping hand, offering care and nourishment to those in need," Cetina said.

When asked how diners can support local businesses during this tough time — besides eating at them — Cetina encouraged individuals to pay attention to which causes their favorite restaurants are supporting. He continued, "The journey to rebuild will extend far beyond the extinguishing of the fires, and monetary donations will play a critical role in helping the community recover and rebuild more quickly."