diff --git a/blueprints/conversation/agents.py b/blueprints/conversation/agents.py
index 9c0fb08..6d57c7e 100644
--- a/blueprints/conversation/agents.py
+++ b/blueprints/conversation/agents.py
@@ -1369,13 +1369,29 @@ async def beli_search_restaurants(
         if name:
             qs = qs.filter(name__icontains=name)
 
-        restaurants = (
-            await qs.order_by("friend_beli_user_id", "rank_index", "name")
-            .limit(15)
-            .all()
-        )
+        if friends_only:
+            # Fetch broadly ordered by rank, then sample up to 3 top picks per friend
+            rows = await qs.order_by("rank_index", "name").limit(500).all()
+            if cuisine:
+                cuisine_lower = cuisine.lower()
+                rows = [
+                    r
+                    for r in rows
+                    if any(cuisine_lower in c.lower() for c in (r.cuisine or []))
+                ]
+            seen: dict[str, int] = {}
+            restaurants = []
+            for r in rows:
+                fid = r.friend_beli_user_id
+                if seen.get(fid, 0) < 3:
+                    restaurants.append(r)
+                    seen[fid] = seen.get(fid, 0) + 1
+                if len(restaurants) >= 15:
+                    break
+        else:
+            restaurants = await qs.order_by("rank_index", "name").limit(15).all()
 
-        if cuisine:
+        if cuisine and not friends_only:
             cuisine_lower = cuisine.lower()
             restaurants = [
                 r