American Automobile Association (AAA) is one of the world’s largest travel organisations, which published more than 300 million copies of travelling materials. The diamond rating system was introduced in 1977 during its 75th anniversary.
AAA restaurant rating covers United States, Canada, Mexico, and the Caribbean. Restaurants do not pay a fee to become AAA Diamond rated. They must first meet 12 essential requirements. A strict quality evaluation would then be completed before assigning a rating of one to five Diamonds, which indicates the extensiveness of food, décor, and personal service.
Basic good food
Relaxed family fare
Entry-level Fine Dining
Fine Dining
World-class Dining
Approximate 28,000 restaurants were reviewed in the rating for 2011. Only 55 achieved Five Diamonds; among about 2,000 reviewed restaurants in New York City, only 3 have achieved Five Diamonds (Aureole, Daniel, and Jean Georges).
2011 AAA Five-Diamond Restaurants
2011 AAA Four-Diamond Restaurants
AAA Diamond Rating Levels details