The World’s 50 Best Restaurants announced the winners in Valencia on June 20th evening with the sponsorships of S. Pellegrino & Acqua Panna. The annual awards ceremony, which celebrated all of the world’s finest restaurants, took place on June 20, Tuesday. The list is decided by a panel of experts, and there are few rules: those on the panel can not vote for any restaurant they have an economic interest in, and they must have eaten at restaurants that win their votes in the previous 19 months. The list of restaurants were revealed during an annual red-carpet award ceremony with industry leaders, restaurateurs and media in attendance, in an exciting countdown to the announcement of the coveted title of Best Restaurant in the World. Let’s take a look at the best restaurants which have been decided by the experts.
The World’s 50 Best Restaurants 2023: #1 is announced as Central in Lima, run by Virgilio Martínez Véliz.
INDIVIDUAL AWARDS
Flor de Cana Sustainable Restaurant 2023: Fyn, Cape Town
Resy One to Watch Award 2023: Tatiana by Kwame Onwuachi
The World’s Best Pastry Chef Award 2023: Pia Salazar
Beronia World’s Best Sommelier Award 2023: Miguel Ángel Millan (DiverXO)
The World’s Best Female Chef Award 2023: Elena Reygadas (Rosetta, Mexico City)
Champions of Change 2023: Nora Fitzgerald Belahcen, Damian Diaz & Othon Nolasco
The Icon Award 2023: Andoni Luis Aduriz
Gin Mare Art of Hospitality Award 2023: Alchemist, Kopenhagen
Best of the Best 2023: El Bulli, Roses/The French Laundry, Yountville/The Fat Duck, Bray/Noma, Copenhagen/El Celler de Can Roca, Girona/Osteria Francescana, Modena/Eleven Madison Park, New York/Mirazur, Menton
The Best Restaurant in Europe 2023: Disfrutar, Barcelona
The Best Restaurant in South America 2023: Central, Lima
THE 50 BEST RESTAURANTS
No. 50: The Chairman, Hong Kong
No. 49: Rosetta, Mexico City
No. 48: La Grenouillère, France
No. 47: Mayta, Lima
No. 46: Orfali Bros Bistro, Dubai
No. 45: Noberhart & Schmutzig, Berlin
No. 44: Le Bernardin, New York
No. 43: Leo, Bogotá
No. 42: Piazza Duomo, Alba
No. 41: Le Calandre, Rubano
No. 40: Restaurant Tim Raue, Berlin
No. 39: The Jane, Antwerp
No. 38: The Clove Club, London
No. 37: Sézanne, Tokyo
No. 36: Plénitude, Paris
No. 35: Ikoyi, London
No. 34: Uliassi, Senigallia
No. 33: El Chato, Bogotá
No. 32: Hiša Franko, Kobarid
No. 31: Mugaritz, San Sebastian
No. 30: Frantzén, Stockholm
No. 29: Boragó, Santiago
No. 28: Kjolle, Lima
No. 27: Florilège, Tokyo
No. 26: Schloss Schauenstein, Fürstenau
No. 25: Belcanto, Lisbon
No. 24: Septime, Paris
No. 23: Kol, London
No. 22: Elkano, Getaria
No. 21: Den, Tokyo
No. 20: Quique Dacosta, Denia
No. 19: Don Julio, Buenos Aires
No. 18: Steirereck, Vienna
No. 17: Gaggan Anand, Bangkok
No. 16: Reale, Castel di Sangro
No. 15: Le Du, Bangkok
No. 14 Estrella Damm Chefs’ Choice Award 2023 (Best Restaurant in Asia): Odette, Julien Royer, Singapore
No. 13: Pujol, Mexico City
No. 12: A Casa Do Porco, Sao Paulo
No. 11 The Best Restaurant in Middle East & Africa 2023: Tresind Studio, Dubai
No. 10 Highest New Entry Award 2023: Table by Bruno Verjus, Paris
No. 9: Quintonil, Mexico City
No. 8 Villa Massa Highest Climber Award 2023: Atomix, New York
No. 7: Lido 84, Gardone Riviera
No. 6: Maido, Lima
No. 5: Alchemist, Copenhagen
No. 4: Asador Extebarri, Atxondo
No. 3: DiverXo, Madrid
No. 2 The Best Restaurant in Europe 2023: Disfrutar, Barcelona
No. 1: Central, Lima
The World’s #1 Best Restaurant 2023 is Central by Virgilio Martínez Véliz
The World’s 50 Best Restaurants 2023’s number one is Central in Lima by Virgilio Martínez Véliz. Award-winner chef expressed his feelings by saying: “Thank you so much to all supporters today. To the people far away. To peers, colleagues, mentors over there. To Valencia; this beautiful place, huge place. Beautiful city, thank you so much! This is not about being number one, not about competing. It’s not about being the best. What we do every single day to love what we do, to keep achieving our beautiful goals is just looking for the truth.”
Conscious of its lack of connectivity, Central wishes to humbly take on the great challenge of discovering and, in some cases, rediscovering its beautiful country, replete with unique ingredients, landscapes, cultures, traditions, and history. Above all it wishes to connect with the individuals who live there and convey their stories. Its collaborative team works hard to create links between humans, nature and culture, and strives to highlight those elusive elements that few people see in their daily lives. The expedition it undertakes has no destination or end, rather, it centers on constant movement, observation and respect for the temporality and the seasonality dictated by Earth.
Celebrating its 21st birthday this year, The World’s 50 Best Restaurants headed to Valencia for the ceremony. Since 2002, a series of panels compiled from global experts have voted for the restaurants they believe deserve a spot on the list.
The Voting Process
The World’s 50 Best Restaurants 2023 list is voted for by 1,080 international restaurant industry experts and well-travelled gourmets who make up The World’s 50 Best Restaurants Academy. The gender-balanced Academy comprises 27 separate regions around the world, each of which has 40 members including a chairperson. No sponsor from the event has any influence over the voting process.
Professional services consultancy Deloitte independently adjudicates The World’s 50 Best Restaurants list, including the ranking from 51-100. This adjudication ensures that the integrity and authenticity of the voting process and the resulting lists are protected.
About The World’s 50 Best Restaurants
Since 2002, The World’s 50 Best Restaurants has reflected the diversity of the world’s culinary landscape. The annual list of the world’s most prestigious restaurants provides a snapshot of some of the best destinations for unique culinary experiences, in addition to being a barometer for and a pioneer of global gastronomic trends. The 50 Best family also includes Latin America’s 50 Best Restaurants, Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants, Middle East & North Africa’s 50 Best Restaurants, The World’s 50 Best Hotels, The World’s 50 Best Bars, Asia’s 50 Best Bars, North America’s 50 Best Bars, 50 Best Discovery and the #50BestTalks series, all of which are owned and run by William Reed. 50 Best aims to bring together communities across the hospitality sector to foster collaboration, inclusivity, diversity and discovery and help drive positive change.
About the Host Destination: Visit Valencia
Valencia is the third largest city in Spain with more than 800,000 inhabitants. Bathed by the waters of the Mediterranean, it is clean and green, thanks to multiple urban parks, and boasts more than 300 days of sunshine a year. Its rich Mediterranean cuisine is based on local produce from the orchard that surround the city and nourish its markets, bars and restaurants. In addition, Valencia is the birthplace of the most international Spanish dish: paella. It is a perfect city to enjoy at any time of the year thanks to all its Unesco Heritage attractions such as: the Lonja de la Seda, the Tribunal de las Aguas or the Fallas. Valencia is at the forefront of sustainable projects that have earned it several international awards such as European Smart City 2022, as well as European Green Capital 2024.
About the Main Sponsor: S.Pellegrino & Acqua Panna
S.Pellegrino and Acqua Panna are the main partners of The World’s 50 Best Restaurants and 50 Best for Recovery. S.Pellegrino and Acqua Panna are the leading natural mineral waters in the fine dining world. Together they interpret Italian style worldwide as a synthesis of excellence, pleasure and well-being.