And the Winner is...

Yesterday night was awards night at the Guildhall in London. It was the annual "World's 50 Best Restaurants" presented by S.Pellegrino.

The winner for a second year in a row was Noma from Copenhagen. Congratulations to Rene Redzepi for this amazing achievement! I feel gutted that I had to cancel the reservation I had for Noma this Saturday, but then again I'm sure there will come an other time..

I guess it's worth mentioning that Thomas Keller's French Laundry did not make it on the list (ranked 56) and neither did Gordon Ramsay (not in the top 100). I think this shows that the competition has got fierce and chefs will really have to excel in their cooking, if they want to be at the top.

An other interesting detail is that 7 out of the top 10 are in Europe and the five best restaurants are all European. I'm not saying that the list is biased, but it just feels a bit surprising.

Two restaurants that I have dined at lately, The Ledbury (ranked 34) and Chez Dominique (ranked 35) are in the top 50. Brett Graham's Ledbury recieved the "Highest New Entry" award, and I have to say it is well deserved. This restaurant is just wonderful. Chez Dominique in Helsinki dropped 12 spots on the list and honestly that doesn't shock me, as my previous visit was far from amazing. (I will write more about it after I give them a second chance next week). The look on chef-patron Hans Välimäki's face was priceless when they announced the results. I guess it's back to the kitchen for him!

The Top 50
1 Noma, Denmark (1)
2 El Celler De Can Roca, Spain (4)
3 Mugaritz Spain (5)
4 Osteria Francescana Italy (6)
5 The Fat Duck, U.K. (3)
6 Alinea, U.S. (7)
7 D.O.M, Brazil (18)
8 Arzak, Spain (9)
9 Le Chateaubriand, France (11)
10 Per Se, U.S. (10)
11 Daniel, U.S. (8)
12 Les Creations De Narisawa, Japan (24)
13 L’Astrance, France (16)
14 L’Atelier De Joel Robuchon, France (29)
15 Hof Van Cleve, Belgium (17)
16 Pierre Gagnaire, France (13)
17 Oud Sluis, Netherlands (19)
18 Le Bernardin, U.S. (15)
19 L’Arpege, France (Re-Entry)
20 Nihonryori Ryugin, Japan (48)
21 Vendome, Germany (22)
22 Steirereck, Austria (21)
23 Schloss Schauenstein, Switzerland (30)
24 Eleven Madison Park, U.S. (50)
25 Aqua, Germany (34)
26 Quay, Australia (27)
27 Iggy’s, Singapore (28)
28 Combal Zero, Italy (35)
29 Martin Berasategui, Spain (33)
30 Bras, France (Re-Entry)
31 Biko, Mexico (46)
32 Le Calandre, Italy (20)
33 Ristorante Cracco, Italy (Re-Entry)
34 The Ledbury, U.K. (New Entry)
35 Chez Dominique, Finland (23)
36 Le Quartier Francais, South Africa (31)
37 Amber, China (New Entry)
38 Dal Pescatore Italy (36)
39 Il Canto, Italy (40)
40 Momofuku Ssam Bar, U.S. (26)
41 St John, U.K. (43)
42 Astrid Y Gaston, Peru (New Entry)
43 Hibiscus, U.K. (49)
44 La Maison Troisgros, France (44)
45 Alain Ducasse Au Plaza Athenee, France (41)
46 De Librije, Netherlands (37)
47 Hotel De Ville, Switzerland (14)
48 Varvary, Russia (New Entry)
49 Pujol, Mexico (New entry)
50 Etxebarri, Spain (Re-Entry)