By Maureen O’Hare, CNN
It’s another good year for Copenhagen as, for the second year in a row, a restaurant in the Danish capital has been named the best on the planet in the The 50 best restaurants in the world price.
Geranium serves a meatless, seasonal Scandi menu in the unusual surroundings of the eighth floor of Denmark’s national football stadium. It’s only open four days a week, a choice made by head chef Rasmus Kofoed and co-owner Søren Ledet to uphold a philosophy of work-life balance.
The two friends hugged happily as they celebrated receiving their awards in a lavish ceremony held on Monday evening in London’s Old Billingsgate, a Victorian building that was once the largest fish market of the world. Hollywood actor and CNN presenter Stanley Tucci hosted the ceremony, resplendent in a white tuxedo jacket over what was the The hottest day of the year in the UK.
Restaurants are only allowed to win the top prize once, after which they are entered into a separate “Best of the Best” program. Members of this elite group include Noma, Geranium’s neighbor in Copenhagen, as well as Eleven Madison Park in New York, The Fat Duck near London, Osteria Francescana in Modena, Italy, and Mirazur in Menton, France.
The rest of the list
South American restaurants also performed well. In Lima, chefs Virgilio Martínez and Pía León’s Central moved up two places to second place, while Maido, which serves a Japanese-Peruvian fusion, slipped to No. 11.
Brazil’s A Caso do Porco – a celebration of all things porcine – climbed 10 places to No. 7.
Spain‘s performance this year has also been strong. Barcelona’s Disfrutar was at No. 3, Madrid’s Diverxo climbed to fourth place, while Larrabetzu’s Asador Etxebarri – where all dishes, even desserts, are flame-grilled – slipped to No. 6.
Mexico City was represented by Pujol, which took fifth place – this year’s best restaurant in North America – and Quintonil, which climbed from No. 27 last year to land at No. 9.
The Italians Lido 84 and Le Calandre also moved up the rankings this year. Uliassi, in Italy’s Senigallia region, was – at No. 12 – this year’s highest new entry.
It wasn’t until No. 20 that an Asia-based restaurant made an appearance, with Den in Tokyo earning the top spot on this year’s list.
In the 20 years that the awards have been around, no restaurant outside of Europe or North America has ever won the World’s 50 Best award. So far, all winners have come from Spain, USA, UK, Denmark, Italy and France.
The 50 best restaurants in the world
1. Geranium (Copenhagen, Denmark)
2. Central (Lima, Peru) *Best restaurant in South America*
3. Disfruitar (Barcelona, Spain)
4. Diverxo (Madrid, Spain)
5. Pujol (Mexico City, Mexico) *Best restaurant in North America*
6. Asador Etxebarri (Axpe, Spain)
seven. A Casa do Porco (Sao Paulo, Brazil)
8. Pool 84 (Gardon Riviera, Italy)
9. quintonil (Mexico City, Mexico)
ten. The Grille (Rubano, Italy)
11. Maido (Lima, Peru)
12. Uliassi (Senigallia, Italy)
13. Steirereck (Vienna, Austria)
14. Don Julio (Buenos Aires, Argentina)
15. real (Castel di Sangro, Italy)
16. Elkano (Getaria, Spain)
17. Nobelhart & Schmutzig (Berlin, Germany)
18. Alchemist (Copenhagen, Denmark)
19. Piazza Duomo (Alba, Italy)
20. Lair (Tokyo, Japan) *Best restaurant in Asia*
21. Mugaritz (San Sebastian, Spain)
22. September (Paris, France)
23. Joan (Antwerp, Belgium)
24. President (Hong Kong)
25. Frantzén (Stockholm, Sweden)
26. Restaurant Tim Raue (Berlin, Germany)
27. Hof van Cleve (Kruishoutem, Belgium)
28. The Clarence (Paris, France)
29. St. Hubert (San Cassiano, Italy)
30. Anthology (Tokyo, Japan)
31. Arpeggio (Paris, France)
32. Maita (Lima, Peru)
33. Atomix (New York City)
34. Hisa Franko (Kobarid, Slovenia)
35. The clove club (London, UK)
36. Odette (Singapore)
37. Funen (Cape Town, South Africa)
38. Jordnaer (Copenhagen, Denmark)
39. sorn (Bangkok, Thailand)
40. Schauenstein Castle (Fürstenau, Switzerland)
41. The top (Osaka, Japan)
42. Quique Dacosta (Denia, Spain)
43. Borago (Santiago, Chile)
44. The Bernardine (New York City)
45. Narisawa (Tokyo, Japan)
46. Belcanto (Lisbon, Portugal)
47. Otec (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil)
48. Leo (Bogota – Colombia)
49. Ikoyi (London, England)
50. Single thread (Healdsburg, CA)
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