New Restaurant of the Year was awarded toSaint Peter in Paddington,Sydney."Chef Josh Niland has created a restaurant unlike any other in the country with Saint Peter,"Rigby said."It's gill-to-tail fish cookery that's prepared and served with integrity and smarts."

Victorian restaurantsAttica,Brae, andMinamishima retained the"three hat"rating awarded to restaurants with a score of at least 18 out of 20.Quay andSepia both kept their three-hat status in Sydney whileUrbaneflew the three-hat flag for Brisbane.

Melbourne'sVue de Monde and Sydney'sBridge Room both dropped from three hats to two,as did Esquire in Brisbane.

It was a rough year for regional Queensland dining withThe Long Apron in Montville andThe Peak, Maryvale,both dropping from two hats to one.The Fish House in Burleigh Heads also took a hit and dropped a notch to one hat,however nearby restaurantRick Shoreswas awarded a hat for the first time.

Back in Brisbane,Matt Moran'sAria took out Wine List of the Year and Fortitude Valley bistroMadame Rouge was the only new Queensland restaurant to make it into the guide.

The nationalGood Food Guide features 500 restaurant reviews and takes the hats to all corners of Australia. A total of 267 restaurants across the country were awarded one hat or more. A restaurant needs a minimum score of 15 out of 20 to obtain a hat.

Western Australia saw nine restaurants enter the guide with a hat,whileCullen Estate in Wilyabrup andVasse Felix in Margaret River bagged two.Hanuman in Darwin represented with a hat for the Northern Territory.

South Australia had a strong showing with 10 restaurants in the guide including chef Duncan Welgemoed's North African-inspired eatery,Africola, and Adam Liston's all-newShobosho each claiming a hat. Native ingredient-focusedRestaurant Orana hit double-hats for the Festival State as didHentley Farm andMagill Estate Restaurant.

Tiny,mighty Tasmania had a formidable first year with six one-hat entries.The Agrarian Kitchen Eatery, the idyllic restaurant offshoot to Rodney Dunn and Severine Demanet's New Norfolk cooking school,claimed two hats and also took home the gong for Santa Vittoria Regional Restaurant of the Year.

The Age Good Food Guide was launched in 1979 andThe Sydney Morning Herald Good Food Guide followed five years later. The firstBrisbane Times Good Food Guide was published in 2012.

The decision to make the guide a national edition came about because"frankly,it was the right time",Rigby said.

"Our readers aren't just voracious eaters,they're voracious travellers. We've scoured the entire country to report on the best restaurants,whether they're hidden in old mental asylums in rural Tasmania or sexy laneways in the heart of Melbourne.

"My hope is this broadening of scope will create larger conversations around food. And that can only be a good thing,right?"

TheGood Food Guide 2018 will be on sale from October 17 in newsagencies,bookstores and viathestore.com.au/goodfood,RRP $29.99.