Etiquette -- 2 days ago
5 for the bucket list: the best restaurants in the world
In recent years, there has been a shake-up in the world of the restauranteur. The famed Michelin guide, once the blueprint of global fine dining, has been somewhat eclipsed by The World’s 50 Best Restaurants list. Formed by a panel of 1000 restaurant experts, the list has had a profound influence of late; those listed have seen their already over-subscribed booking lists come under renewed attack for all sides. Combining refined tastes with a raw sensory experience, these are the restaurants that every gentleman should aspire to dine in.
El Celler de Can Roca
Girona, Spain
Image: Cellarcanroca.com
El Celler de Can Roca is run by the Roca brothers, a trio lauded by the 50 Best List as a gastronomic ‘Holy Trinity’. Josep, Jordi and Joan Roca – executive chef, pastry chef and head sommelier respectively – take diners on a 21 course odyssey through global cuisine, exploring a wide range of flavours in an extraordinary array of dishes, some of them unlike anything a diner will have experienced. Importantly, however, the brothers remain aware that it is the overall experience that makes a restaurant truly great, giving equal attention to warm hospitality and cultivating the right kind of atmosphere. Joan is adamant: “The only thing that matters is that the client is satisfied and wants to return, regardless of whether the restaurant is number one or number two, three or fifty.” The brothers’ culinary experience aside, El Celler warrants acclaim for the sheer range and eclecticism of food on offer. The current waiting list is, however, said to be 11 months long.
For more information, click here.
2. Osteria Francescana
Modena, Italy
Image: Italoamericano.com
Helmed by chef Massimo Bottura, the twelve-tabled Osteria Francescana is a true celebration of Italian cuisine, paying homage to Emilia-Romagna, Bottura’s home province. The menu mingles refined classics with more unusual creations – the Five Ages of Parmigiano Reggiano, for instance, is said to be a cheese dish unlike anything most people will have tasted. A restaurant that explores regional traditions in an unequivocally contemporary way, Osteria Francescana is the very best offering from the nation of epicureans.
For more information, click here.
3. Noma
Copenhagen, Denmark
Returning to Danish soil in 2015 following a hugely successful (and oversubscribed) pop-up in Japan, Rene Redzepi’s Noma is credited with elevating Nordic cuisine to new, influential heights. Working with ingredients in line with the seasons, Redzepi is renowned for experimenting with local specialties – pickled foods, for example – in a distinctly creative way. When looking for an introduction to Nordic cuisine, a gentleman could certainly do worse than dining at the restaurant named by the 50 Best List as “one of the most influential of the century”.
For more information, click here.
4. Central
Lima, Peru
The 17 course taster menu created by head chef Virgilio Martinez takes diners across a vertical journey, sampling ingredients found in Peru’s mountains, desert, sea and jungle. Including foods from 35 metres below sea level to a sporting 4,200 above, the subsequent menu is at times a tale of extremes. The Central’s mission is not simply cooking, however, but genuine botanical and nutritional explorations, made by its own dedicated research arm led by Malena Martinez, Virgilio’s sister. Combining gastronomy with science, geography and anthropology, the team behind Central pry ever deeper in to the secrets of Peru’s flora and fauna – an undertaking which translates in the form of a truly exceptional dining experience.
For more information, click here.
5. Eleven Madison Park
New York, USA
Co-owned by Daniel Humm and Will Guider, Eleven Madison Park is found within the Art-Deco Metropolitan Life North Building. Although the food is seen to be the best in all of America, Humm and Guider place equally great importance on the experiences that stem from the other side of the kitchen doors – namely, the level of service and the atmosphere of the dining room. In this respect nothing is spared, with research done on prospective guests so that Humm’s tasting menu can be tailored to their tastes. Consequently, a visit to Eleven Madison Park begins to seem like the culinary equivalent of a visit to Savile Row.
For more information, click here.
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