Given that it is World Chef Day, we thought it best to look back at which of the world’s biggest culinary names had set up shop in Dubai.
Normally, we’d base this list off the World’s 50 Best Restaurants list 2020, but due to the affect on the food and beverage industry by the coronavirus pandemic, there will be no list this year.
Instead, we look back at the 2019 list (which remains unchanged) which was announced last year in Singapore. Along with the usual faces that grace the list year after year, there were quite a few new entries this time around.
Some of the chefs on the list have Dubai restaurants as well. So you don’t need to travel to Europe or South America to try their food.
Jose Avillez’s Belcanto in Lisbon debuted at number 42 on the World’s 50 Best Restaurants list. Avillez recently opened his Dubai restaurant Tasca at the Mandarin Oriental in Jumeirah. The chef has 19 restaurants under his belt and Tasca in the new Mandarin Oriental Jumeira, Dubai is his first international venture.
Chef Tim Raue’s Tim Raue Restaurant in Berlin is also on the list at number 40. His eponymous restaurant has two Michelin stars and he opened his restaurant Dragonfly in 2016 at CityWalk but it has since shut down.
Yannick Alleno’s Alléno Paris au Pavillon Ledoyen comes in at number 25. His signature restaurant in Dubai is STAY by Yannick Alléno at One&Only The Palm uses the Michelin-starred chef’s philosophy of blending the finest, freshest ingredients with imagination and style.
Alain Ducasse au Plaza Athénée (Paris, France) is high on the list at number 16. He recently opened MIX by Alain Ducasse at Emerald Palace Kempinski on the Palm in Dubai. miX offers up sea views as well as fancy décor – including a giant Fabergé egg. The massive, golden egg sits in the centre of the space, spanning all three floors. The 500 sq m venue seats up to 400 diners and aims to convey the “space between dream and reality”.
Vladimir Mukhin White Rabbit in Moscow returned to the list at number 13. Known for both his appearance on Netflix’s Chef’s Table and for his spectacular White Rabbit restaurant in Moscow, Mukhin was inspired by fish markets around the world. His restaurant in Dubai — Crab Market in DIFC features an ice market and large tanks of seawater where guests can select their fresh seafood and live crabs.
Maintaining his number 6 position is Peru’s Virgilio Martinez and his restaurant Central. Martinez, whose first restaurant in London has been awarded a prestigious Michelin Star, Lima’s menu takes Peruvian cuisine to another level.
The World’s 50 Best Restaurants also launched a new category this year that recognised its new “Best of the Best” program recipients including renowned chef Heston Blumenthal, whose restaurant has made The World’s 50 Best Restaurants list multiple times. Blumenthal, who will open Dinner by Heston Blumenthal at The Royal Atlantis Resort & Residences in Dubai next year.
The Royal Atlantis Resort & Residences is the only residential development in the world to have three chefs recognised by The World’s 50 Best Restaurants. Others include Jaleo by José Andrés (Andrés received this year’s Icon Award) and La Mar by Gastón Acurio, who last year received its Lifetime Achievement award.
Massimo Bottura whose restaurant Osteria Francescana was 2018’s number one restaurant on the list, recently opened his Dubai outlet Torno Subito at the new W Dubai The Palm hotel. Torno Subito is the first restaurant outside of Italy for the chef, and it promises to “take guests on a journey back to 1960s Italy, where the vibe is sophisticated and social, but laid-back”.
Here’s the full list for the World’s 50 Best Restaurants for 2019.
1. Mirazur (Menton, France)
2. Noma (Copenhagen, Denmark)
3. Asador Etxebarri (Atxondo, Spain)
4. Gaggan (Bangkok, Thailand)
5. Geranium (Copenhagen, Denmark)
6. Central (Lima, Peru)
7. Mugaritz (San Sebastian, Spain)
8. Arpège (Paris, France)
9. Disfrutar (Barcelona, Spain)
10. Maido (Lima, Peru)
11. Den (Tokyo, Japan)
12. Pujol (Mexico City, Mexico)
13. White Rabbit (Moscow, Russia)
14. Azurmendi (Larrabetzu, Spain)
15. Septime (Paris, France)
16. Alain Ducasse au Plaza Athénée (Paris, France)
17. Steirereck (Vienna, Austria)
18. Odette (Singapore)
19. Twins Garden (Moscow, Russia)
20. Tickets (Barcelona, Spain)
21. Frantzén (Stockholm, Sweden)
22. Narisawa (Tokyo, Japan)
23. Cosme (New York City, USA)
24. Quintonil (Mexico City, Mexico)
25. Alléno Paris au Pavillon Ledoyen (Paris, France)
26. Boragó (Santiago, Chile)
27. The Clove Club (London, United Kingdom)
28. Blue Hill at Stone Barns (Pocantico Hills, USA)
29. Piazza Duomo (Alba, Italy)
30. Elkano (Getaria, Spain)
31. Le Calandre (Rubano, Italy)
32. Nerua (Bilbao, Spain)
33. Lyle’s (London, United Kingdom)
34. Don Julio (Buenos Aires, Argentina)
35. Atelier Crenn (San Francisco, USA)
36. Le Bernardin (New York City, USA)
37. Alinea (Chicago, USA)
38. Hiša Franko (Kobarid, Slovenia)
39. A Casa do Porco (São Paulo, Brazil)
40. Restaurant Tim Raue (Berlin, Germany)
41. The Chairman (Hong Kong)
42. Belcanto (Lisbon, Portugal)
43. Hof Van Cleve (Kruishoutem, Belgium)
44. Test Kitchen (Cape Town, South Africa)
45. Sühring (Bangkok, Thailand)
46. De Librije (Zwolle, Netherlands)
47. Benu (San Francisco, USA)
48. Ultraviolet by Paul Pairet (Shanghai, China)
49. Leo (Bogotá, Colombia)
50. Schloss Schauenstein (Fürstenau, Switzerland)
Best Pastry Chef: Jessica Préalpato (Alain Ducasse au Plaza Athénée, Paris)
Best Female Chef: Daniela Soto-Innes (Cosme, New York City)
Icon Award: José Andrés (ThinkFoodGroup, Washington D.C.)
One to Watch: Lido 84 (Gardone Riviera, Italy)
BBVA Scholarship Winner: Andersen Lee
Sustainable Restaurant Award: Schloss Schauenstein (Fürstenau, Switzerland)
Chefs’ Choice Award: Alain Passard
Highest Climber: Azurmendi (Larrabetzu, Spain)
Art of Hospitality Award: Den (Tokyo, Japan)
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