How will the 2025 Best Of 225 Awards be chosen?
The winners of Best of 225 are selected by residents of the 225 area code. The process is broken into two rounds: nominations and voting.
During the first round, write-in nominations, residents are encouraged to write in their favorite local businesses, people and things to do in the Greater Baton Rouge area.
In the second round, the businesses and people who receive the most nominations in each category will be listed on the ballot.
The Best Of winners are announced in 225’s July 2025 Best Of 225 issue.
When are nominations and final voting?
Write-in nominations will run from Dec. 9, 2024, to Jan. 31, 2025. Voting will be open from Feb. 25, 2025, to April 8, 2025.
Where do I go to nominate and vote?
Who can vote? And how many times can they nominate/vote?
Each person can nominate and/or vote for each category one time. Voters may change or update their ballots as many times as they like before the April 3 deadline.
Why do you need my address, and how is it used? How about my email address?
To be verified as a resident of the 225 area code, voters must include their full names and addresses on the ballot. Voters may only complete one ballot, and it is linked to their email address. The linked email address also allows voters to update or change their votes if they wish to do so. Your personal data—including your address, and who or what you cast votes for—are never shared publicly.
Why don’t you have a category for ________________?
To try and keep Best of 225 fresh, we switch up our categories each year. We rotate out old categories, add a few new ones and bring back some old favorites each year. Just because we don’t have a category like Best Antique Shop or Best King Cakes this year doesn’t mean we won’t have it next year. Feel free to leave suggestions for new categories on this year’s Best of 225 form, and we’ll take them into consideration as we plan the 2026 awards.
Please note that the categories that receive the fewest nominations may be removed from the final voting ballot—so encourage your friends and family to participate in the nominations process!
Tell me more about the awards events.
We host a Hot off the Press party each June to reveal our July issue and this year’s winners. We’ll have more information soon about the date and location. Subscribe to our newsletter, 225 Daily, for updates.
How do I advertise in 225 magazine’s Best Of 225 awards issue?
Please contact Michelle Lanoix at [email protected] for more information on advertising in 225.
I have a question that is not answered here. How can I contact the magazine?
You can reach our editorial team at [email protected] for more info.