Ninth Annual Best of 225 Awards – Did you know?

Best Burger winner Burgersmith
placed fourth in the same category last year behind Fat Cow, Dearman’s and 2013 winner Five Guys. We recommend the Filet Burger. At just $2 more, this tender and flavorful patty nearly melts in your mouth.

Double winner Ichiban
The Best Hibachi Grill and Best Sushi restaurant has a new look. Last summer, owner Randy Wong teamed up with Tang Design, an award-winning interior design company in New York City, to give the Essen Lane restaurant a new look and more upscale fine dining vibe. Wong says the feel is more upscale, but his award-winning restaurant’s pricing and dress code remain more casual.

14: Number of votes separating Best BBQ winner TJ Ribs from runner-up VooDoo BBQ.

That’s amore!
Venerable pasta Mecca Gino’s has won Best Italian nine years running. The popular restaurant’s founder Grace “Mama” Marino (pictured here with her grandchildren) was honored with the “Hall of Fame Laureate” award by Business Report and Junior Achievement at the 2014 Baton Rouge Business Awards and Hall of Fame.

In 2006, Louisiana Lagniappe placed third in the Best Seafood category. The Perkins Road hotspot has gained many new followers since then, winning Best Overall Restaurant this year for the first time.

80: The number of high-definition flat-screen TVs at the new location of Walk-On’s (pictured above) that opened at Towne Center in April. The bar and grill, this year’s winner for Best Place to Watch Sports, also boasts 60 beers on tap, custom pour-your-own table taps, a VIP room, banquet facilities and an outdoor patio with a beer garden.

Our process: In January, we held our open nominations for Best of 225. In February, our scientific survey with your top nominees arrived in the inboxes of the 20,000-plus subscribers of our e-newsletters (Dine, Weekender and Avenue Rouge). More than 4,200 surveys were completed this year. For categories with eight or more nominees, the top five vote-getters have been listed. For categories with fewer than eight nominees, the top three vote-getters are listed. Independent Baton Rouge-based firm SCI Research and Consulting, Inc., conducted the scientific survey.

In preparation for our annual Best of 225 issue, we wanted to know the best things about Baton Rouge according to our readers. See what they had to say below!