The World’s 50 Best Restaurants, a list famous for its historic exclusion of top female chefs; for its bias toward expensive, European-leaning tasting menu venues; and for not requiring judges to pay for their meals, has named its 2018 winner. Much to the surprise of no one, the victor is a European male chef who’s already won the prize. Massimo Bottura’s Osteria Francescana, the avant-garde Italian tasting temple that made an appearance on Aziz Ansari’s Master of None, has returned to the top of the rankings.
The three-Michelin-starred venue, famous for quirky preparations like “Autumn in New York” and “Oops, I Dropped the Lemon Tart,” first reached the No. 1 spot two years ago but was unseated by New York’s Eleven Madison Park.
El Celler de Can Roca in Catalonia took the No. 2 spot, while Mirazur in Southern France moved up to No. 3. Eleven Madison Park, which was closed for renovations for four months in 2017, dropped to No. 4.
One of the most prominent developments isn’t who rose to the top of the rankings again, but rather who was left out again: Atelier Crenn. Chef Dominique Crenn was named the list’s “Best Female Chef” in 2016, an odd and offensive award not just for its mere existence, but because Crenn didn’t even appear in the top 100 that year. She debuted on the long list at No. 83 in 2017, but this year she dropped off the list entirely.
Crenn herself has blasted 50 Best for gender inequality, criticized the female chef award as “stupid,” and accused the organization of treating women like “sport.” The two-Michelin-starred chef was not at the ceremony, but rather attended a charity event in Rochester, New York, raising money for women’s health and pediatric services.
Before the awards, Crenn posted the following quote from entertainment attorney Nina Shaw on Instagram: “I don’t need you to include me from what you excluded me from. We are not diversity we are normal. I want you to normalize your side til it looks like our side and recognize we should have been there all along.”
Clare Smyth, who was awarded Best Female Chef this year for her solo debut at Core in London, was also left off the list.
“For the last 10 years of my career I’ve been asked, ‘What is like to be a female chef?’ to which I reply, ‘I’m not sure what you mean, because I’ve never been a male chef,’” Smyth said in a speech that touched on gender equality and improving the work environment in kitchens. She said she was honored to receive the award, but also acknowledged the debate over whether it should exist in the first place.
The number of female chefs (or co-chefs) on the list increased from last year’s three to five: Central by Pia León and Virgilio Martínez, Arzak by Elena and Juan Mari Arzak, Hiša Franko by Ana Ros, Cosme by Daniela Soto-Innes and Enrique Olvera, and Nahm by Pim Techamuanvivit (it should be noted that Techamuanvivit assumed the top chef job this spring, likely after the voting had already ended).
“It’s all about girl power tonight,” said Mark Durden-Smith, one of the announcers. It was an unfortunate comment not just because of his use of the word “girls,” but because only two of the restaurants on the list, Nahm and Hiša Franko, are run without male co-chefs.
Another awkward moment came before the readout of the list. After an announcer presented Jessie Liu, an aspiring chef from Taiwan, with a 50 Best scholarship, he suggested she might become an accountant one day; he walked back those comments quickly.
This is the first year the list has been published since the onset of the #MeToo movement, which has involved accusations of sexual harassment against some of the highest-profile U.S. chefs and restaurateurs. The World’s 50 Best organization has been largely silent on this issue.
Noma 2.0 was left off the list as it didn’t open in time for voting.
The 2018 World’s 50 Best Restaurant List
This post will be updated throughout the afternoon and evening as the list is unveiled.
1. Osteria Francescana (Modena, Italy)
Chef: Massimo Bottura
Last year’s rank: 2
Average cost: €250-€270
2. El Celler de Can Roca (Girona, Spain)
Chef: Joan Roca
Last year’s rank: 3
Average cost: €165-€195 (USD $184-$218)* 2015 pricing.
3. Mirazur (Menton, France)
Chef: Mauro Colagreco
Last year’s rank: 4
Average cost: €110-€210
4. Eleven Madison Park (New York City)
Chef: Daniel Humm
Last year’s rank: 1
Average cost: $315 (service-included)
5. Gaggan (Bangkok, Thailand)
Chef: Gaggan Anand
Last year’s rank: 7
Average cost: THB 6,500
6. Central (Lima, Peru)
7. Maido (Lima, Peru)
8. L’Arpege (Paris, France)
9. Mugaritz (Errenteria, Spain)
10. Asador Etxebarri (Axpe, Spain)
11. Quintonil (Mexico City, Mexico)
12. Blue Hill at Stone Barns (Pocantico Hills, New York, USA)
13. Pujol (Mexico City, Mexico)
14. Steirereck (Vienna, Austria)
15. White Rabbit (Moscow, Russia)
16. Piazza Duomo (Alba, Italy)
17. Den (Tokyo, Japan)
18. Disfrutar (Barcelona, Spain)
19. Geranium (Copenhagen, Denmark)
20. Attica (Melbourne, Australia)
21. Alain Ducasse au Plaza Athénée (Paris, France)
22. Narisawa (Tokyo, Japan)
23. Le Calandre (Rubano, Italy)
24. Ultraviolet by Paul Pairet (Shanghai, China)
25. Cosme (New York City, USA)
26. Le Bernardin (New York City, USA)
27. Boragó (Santiago, Chile)
28. Odette (Singapore)
29. Alléno Paris au Pavillon Ledoyen (Paris, France)
30. D.O.M. (São Paulo, Brazil)
31. Arzak (San Sebastian, Spain)
32. Tickets (Barcelona, Spain)
33. The Clove Club (London, UK)
34. Alinea (Chicago, USA)
35. Maaemo (Oslo, Norway)
36. Reale (Castel Di Sangro, Italy)
37. Restaurant Tim Raue (Berlin, Germany)
38. Lyle’s (London, UK)
39. Astrid y Gastón (Lima, Peru)
40. Septime (Paris, France)
41. Nihonryori RyuGin (Tokyo, Japan)
42. The Ledbury (London, UK)
43. Azurmendi (Larrabetzu, Spain)
44. Mikla (Istanbul, Turkey)
45. Dinner by Heston Blumenthal (London, UK)
46. Saison (San Francisco, USA)
47. Schloss Schauenstein (Fürstenau, Switzerland)
48. Hiša Franko (Kobarid, Slovenia)
49. Nahm (Bangkok, Thailand)
50. The Test Kitchen (Cape Town, South Africa)
Best Female Chef: Clare Smyth (Core by Clare Smyth, London)
Chef’s Choice Award: Dan Barber (Blue Hill at Stone Barns, Pocantico Hills, New York)
Best Pastry Chef: Cédric Grolet
Lifetime Achievement Award: Gastón Acurio
Art of Hospitality Award: Geranium (Copenhagen, Denmark)
One to Watch: Single Thread (Healdsburg, California)
BBVA Scholarship Winner: Jessie Liu (Taipei)
Sustainable Restaurant Award: Azurmendi (Larrabetzu, Spain)
Highest New Entry: Disfrutar (Barcelona, Spain)
Highest Climber Award: Den (Tokyo, Japan)
(CNN) — If there's ever a bad night to eat out -- not including that time you ordered those mussels -- it's the one when all the planet's top chefs skip work to find out if their restaurants have finally been named the world's best.
This year, culinary masterminds from five continents gathered in the Spanish port city of Bilbao for an award ceremony to name the 50 best fine dining joints for 2018 and, most importantly, crown a champion.
For 2018, the top prize went to Italy's Osteria Francescana and head chef Massimo Bottura , whose dazzling and sometimes surreal reworkings of classic Italian recipes saw him return to the top spot he first held in 2016.
There were few other surprises in the top three of the World's 50 Best Restaurant Awards, with last year's third placers and 2015 winner El Celler de Can Roca , taking second place and France's Mirazur , fourth last year, take third.
Eleven Madison Park -- the 2018 winner which spent part of the year closed for renovations -- was bumped down to fourth.
"We built this together," Bottura told the packed auditorium of the Palacio Euskalduna in Bilbao, where many of his contemporaries were gathered. "I'm not going to disappoint you, I'm going to show the world that chefs in 2018 are much more than the sum of their recipes if we stay together. "
'Human workplaces'
l e v a r t
While European eateries continued to dominate the awards, known as the Oscars of the fine dining world, all five continents were represented, with Bangkok's Gaggan at five on the list and Lima's Central at six.
Also notable was the continuing domination of men at the top of the gastronomic game. The World's 50 Best Restaurants' prize for female chef of the year is often criticized for its shortcomings in addressing this.
This year's recipient, Clare Smyth of London's Core restaurant, took the opportunity to raise the issue while also speaking to wider concerns of welfare among overworked kitchen employees.
"I'm constantly being asked why we have a lack of female chefs, why we don't see more women represented at the top level ... and why don't we have more diversity," she said. "I don't have the answers."
She said the industry needed to create better working environments and make restaurants an equal and "more human workplace for both men and women."
"We must draw a line under this and make sure we clear a path for the next generation. I for one can't wait until we achieve equality and the debate moves on."
Other significant prizes included the Lifetime Achievement Award, which went to Peruvian chef Gastón Acurio of Astrid y Gastón . France's Cédric Grolet won Best Pastry Chef and Spain's Azurmendi took a prize for sustainability.
According to organizers, the results were compiled from an "independent" voting panel of 1,000 judges that were subject to adjudication.
The prize ceremony began with tributes to culinary legends who have passed in the preceding year. Among them Gualtiero Marchesi, the first Italian chef ever to receive three Michelin stars, and French "pope of gastronomes" Paul Bocuse.
Anthony Bourdain, the CNN presenter, writer and chef who often railed against the kind of fine dining establishments celebrated by the awards, was also remembered.
"His honesty, his determination and his stubborn truth telling changed our industry for the better," said William Drew, group editor of the World's 50 Best Restaurants.
The world's 50 best restaurants
4. Eleven Madison Park (New York City) *best restaurant in North America*
5. Gaggan (Bangkok) *best restaurant in Asia*
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Photo: Paolo Terzi / Courtesy of Osteria Francescana
Today, the World’s 50 Best Restaurants were announced at Palacio Euskalduna in Bilbao, Spain. Tastemakers from all corners of the globe arrived in the Basque Country the days leading up to the ceremony, reveling in the region’s exceptional fare and dining at acclaimed restaurants like that of Eneko Atxa’s Azurmendi just 20 minutes outside of the host city and Arzak in neighboring San Sebastián. There was even a celebration for Mugaritz’s 20th anniversary, where attendees shimmied on the makeshift dance floor, snacked on bites presented at various stands, drank their fill of wine and gin tonics, and even participated in a few competitive rounds of tug of war, in which the final match resulted in a snapped rope and both sides tumbling to the ground in jovial laughter.
And while the festivities were plentiful, there was still work to be done. On Sunday, chefs Joan Roca, Gaggan Anand, Eneko Atxa, Dan Barber, Paul Pairet, Christina Tosi, and Clare Smythe, the recipient of this year’s World’s Best Female Chef award, took to the stage at the Basque Culinary Center in Donostia for a series of talks discussing matters like sustainability and answering questions about women in the hospitality industry. The following day renowned chefs Massimo Bottura and Alain Passard, artist Joana Vasconcelos, and architect Giulio Cappellini gathered at the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao and engaged in a conversation on how food and art are interlaced.
All of these events were in anticipation of tonight’s big unveiling, where the who’s who of fine dining were all gathered in one room, awaiting this year’s rankings. For its past five iterations, there have been a trio of restaurants that have rotated their positions within the leading five spots: Osteria Francescana in Modena, Italy, helmed by the vivacious Massimo Bottura; El Celler de Can Roca, ascending to the top twice in the past five years; and Eleven Madison Park, which claimed first place last year and was the first U.S. restaurant to garner such recognition since 2004. Noma, another mainstay and a top earner for four non-consecutive years since World’s 50 Best Restaurants’ inception in 2002, dropped off the list in 2017 as restaurants that are closed or are getting ready to close are not eligible for inclusion, and although René Redzepi reopened his famed establishment in February, it was too late for consideration in this year’s list.
Photo: Jake Chessum / Courtesy of Eleven Madison Park
This year, Osteria Francescana reclaims its title as the best restaurant in the world. Eleven Madison Park drops to fourth after gaining a number one status last year. Co-owned by chef Daniel Humm and restaurateur Will Guidara, the beloved New York City institution closed during the summer for a months-long renovation, reopening in October with a new look, revamped bar program, and trimmed menu. Meanwhile, Gaggan becomes the first Asian restaurant and chef to pass the seventh slot and land in the top five. While Den, an intimate venue in Tokyo, Japan, helmed by one of the most welcoming chefs I’ve ever met, has made an astounding and well-deserved leap from its 45th spot to 17th.
But there are two glaring omissions: Core by Clare Smyth and Atelier Crenn. Once more the organization has left out the recipient of their World’s Best Female Chef award from their list of 100 restaurants, which had also occurred in 2016 when Dominique Crenn of Atelier Crenn was recognized for the same title. Now, after having ranked 83 last year, Atelier Crenn has been dropped from the list entirely. Chef Crenn has been a champion for women in the hospitality industry and has even previously called out the guide’s sponsor for gender inequality. One can only wonder if such outspoken criticism led to her removal, especially given that Crenn is arguably one of the most inventive and exciting chefs in the United States right now, with many critics rallying behind her. However, Ana Roš, last year’s winner of the same award, has climbed her way up into the top 50 with her restaurant Hiša Franko. There are now five female head chefs on the list (two more than last year) but there’s still a long way to go before we see women getting the proper recognition within this male-dominated industry.
Below, the full list of the 50 best restaurants in the world.
1. Osteria Francescana; Modena, Italy
2. El Celler de Can Roca; Girona, Spain
3. Mirazur; Menton, France
4. Eleven Madison Park; New York, USA
5. Gaggan; Bangkok, Thailand
6. Central; Lima, Peru
7. Maido; Lima, Peru
8. Arpège; Paris, France
9. Mugaritz; San Sebastián, Spain
10. Asador Etxebarri; Axpe, Spain
11. Quintonil; Mexico City, Mexico
12. Blue Hill at Stone Barns; Pocantico Hills, USA
13. Pujol; Mexico City, Mexico
14. Steirereck; Vienna, Austria
15. White Rabbit; Moscow, Russia
16. Piazza Duomo; Alba, Italy
17. Den; Tokyo, Japan
18. Disfrutar; Barcelona, Spain
19. Geranium; Copenhagen, Denmark
20. Attica; Melbourne, Australia
21. Alain Ducasse au Plaza Athénée; Paris, France
22. Narisawa; Tokyo, Japan
23. Le Calandre; Rubano, Italy
24. Ultraviolet by Paul Pairet; Shanghai, China
25. Cosme; New York, USA
26. Le Bernardin; New York, USA
27. Boragó; Santiago, Chile
28. Odette; Singapore
29. Alléno Paris au Pavillon Ledoyen; Paris, France
30. D.O.M.; São Paulo, Brazil
31. Arzak; San Sebastián, Spain
32. Tickets; Barcelona, Spain
33. The Clove Club; London, UK
34. Alinea; Chicago, USA
35. Maaemo; Oslo, Norway
36. Reale; Castel di Sangro, Italy
37. Restaurant Tim Raue; Berlin, Germany
38. Lyle’s; London, UK
39. Astrid y Gastón; Lima, Peru
40. Septime; Paris, France
41. Nihonryori RyuGin; Tokyo, Japan
42. The Ledbury; London, UK
43. Azurmendi; Larrabetzu, Spain
44. Mikla; Istanbul, Turkey
45. Dinner by Heston Blumenthal; London, UK
46. Saison; San Francisco, USA
47. Schloss Schauenstein; Fürstenau, Switzerland
48. Hiša Franko; Kobarid, Slovenia
49. Nahm; Bangkok, Thailand
50. The Test Kitchen; Cape Town, South Africa
