The reveal of this year’s winners was also a celebration: the award The World’s 50 Best Restaurants He is celebrating two decades of life. 20 years to reward and reflect the culinary diversity of the world, and in which its panel of expert juries has only grown. 20 years of awakening joys and consecrating talents, of fulfilling the dream of many chefs and propelling many others to fame.
With the hope of being a compass for the best destinations in search of magnificent culinary experiences (and also being a barometer of global trends), this event sponsored by S. Pellegrino and Acqua Panna continues to amaze every year. While some classics hold up, other finds make their way in. More or less popular, controversial, disruptive: the premise is that no diner remains indifferent. Next, what was awarded in the first five positions.
From Europe to Latin America
The absolute podium took him geranium, a restaurant in Copenhagen, Denmark, which had risen to second place last year. Led by chef Rasmus Kofoed, it presents its mission as “creating food that awakens the senses”, and it does so with meticulous cuisine from which it was recently decided to exclude meat. You have to surrender to your experience: it consists of 20 dishes from starters to desserts that are divided into about three hours.
with three stars michelin, its focus is local seafood and fish and vegetables from organic and biodynamic productions from Denmark and Scandinavia. An example? Forest mushrooms with beer, smoked egg yolk, pickled herring and rye bread. This and other dishes are served on nature-inspired crockery that is almost a work of art.
The next position went to Peru and its restaurant Central, in Lima. Here the organization awarded a cuisine that celebrates the history, tradition and landscapes of this country using an abundance of local products. Its menu of steps represents the best quality that land and sea have to offer, from scallops and squid to goat neck and pork stomach. In addition, sustainability is at the heart of the proposal, which recycles, composts and even works with discarded ingredients. Diners perceive this as soon as they walk through the door and through an orchard with more than 100 species.
Third place brings us back to Europe: it was awarded to Enjoy, in Barcelona, Spain. The three chefs under his command are former The Bulli, and that legacy is evident in his contemporary techniques, daring combinations and the desire to always surprise the client. Creations such as the panchino, stuffed with caviar and sour cream, or the multi-spherical pesto with tender pistachios and eel are proof of his drive to innovate. Along this path, in 2021 they unveiled a new way of eating: they propose a table that “comes to life” during the evening, offering secret compartments and hidden drawers with surprise snacks.
Disruptive and regional
In the following place is registered diverse, also in Spain, but this time in Madrid. As his name indicates, it is a disruptive bet that encourages controversy, and is born from chef Dabiz Muñoz, recognized for his culinary daring and considered one of the most creative chefs in the world. He was 33 years old when he won three Michelin stars, after his father had told him that he would achieve such a successful restaurant on the day “that pigs flew”. In response, flying pigs hang from the roof of Diverxo today.
The proposal is a bit like entering Muñoz’s lush imagination. The 12-course menu takes diners through innovative Asian dishes, such as Cantonese noodles with eel stew or “Galician lobster waking up on the beaches of Goa,” which looks like a work of art.
Fifth place goes to Pujol, in Mexico City, already a regular in this ranking. Here the invitation is to try a 7-step menu with a selection that changes according to the seasons, but always maintains milestones such as the Mole Madre and Mole Nuevo, as well as the steaming plate of tender corn with a Chicatana ant mayonnaise.
Ours
And what about the Argentines? This 2022 only one made it to the international list (it remains to be seen in the Latin American version of the awards, due towards the end of the year): the grill Don Julio in the 14th, in charge of Paul Rivero and with the talent in the fires of Guido Tassi. With all its meat coming from Aberdeen Angus and Hereford cattle raised in fields on the outskirts of Buenos Aires and aged for at least 21 days in a controlled chamber in order to achieve optimal maturity, the recognized dishes of the house are the beef rump and enters it. But they also highlight entrees such as corn, pumpkin and cheese empanadas or the selection of artisanal offal, from chorizo and black pudding to grilled sausage. Another of your strengths? The perfect pairing that it offers, with a cava with more than 14,000 Argentine labels. Those already enjoyed adorn the walls and turn the space into a kind of wine sanctuary, in which diners can leave their own mark by signing and writing on the bottles.
The finishing touch is provided Mauro Colagrecothe Argentine chef whose restaurant Mirazur, on the French Riviera, was awarded so many times in this contest that today it occupies the place of the “Best of the Best”. Among a list of eight select ones, it takes local talent to the top of world gastronomy.
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