The 22nd edition of The World’s 50 Best Restaurants, sponsored by S.Pellegrino and Acqua Panna, saw the best chefs and restaurateurs from around the globe descend on the entertainment capital of Las Vegas for festivities and fun, building up to the hotly anticipated awards ceremony on Wednesday 5 June. Here are all the highlights from this year’s event
It's Vegas, baby!
Chefs, restaurateurs and sommeliers headed to the world’s entertainment capital for a week of celebrations. In partnership with Visit Las Vegas, Wynn Las Vegas, Resorts World and The Venetian Resort, The World’s 50 Best Restaurants was back in the US for the second time in its storied history, having been hosted in New York in 2016.
A memorable gastronomic welcome
Saying hello to Vegas in style, the Welcome Dinner saw two of the Roca brothers from El Celler de Can Roca join forces with Virgilio Martínez and Pía León from Central in Lima (The World’s Best Restaurant 2023), along with Daniel Ontiveros of the host city’s very own Carversteak.
Canapés included ‘Olivada’ made with seven different types of olive oil, and Iberico ham provided by Cinco Jotas. El Celler de Can Roca’s white asparagus comtessa – like a mini luxury Viennetta – and asparagus tips, featuring Lee Kum Kee, kicked off the menu proper. Amazonian Soil from Central came next, made with pacu (a South American freshwater fish related to the piranha), lime bark and cacao; and Extreme Altitude, with ancient Andean grains and smoked duck. Ontiveros was on main course duty, with a binchotan-grilled wagyu rib cap, lightly fried langoustine tail and silky black truffle potato.
Dessert was a full-on chocolate feast with Jordi Roca’s Chocolate Anarchy, a technically brilliant dish comprising myriad chocolate textures and tastes. Guests finished on a high with bonbons from Casa Cacao’s bean-to-bar workshop enjoyed alongside a dram of The Craft Irish Whiskey Co.’s The Donn.
Fisheye ice cream and Cosmic Brownies
Gastronomic gold can be found in all sorts of unexpected places: ingredients, techniques, environments and even people. At #50BestTalks in Vegas, some of the world’s top hospitality figures shared their thoughts on the theme of Treasure Hunt: the quest for culinary gold.
The jam-packed event saw Josh Niland from Saint Peter in Sydney, aka ‘the fish butcher’, doing what he does best, expertly breaking down a fish on stage and exploring all the exciting ways to use unexpected parts. This was demonstrated perfectly with a tasty bite of a chocolate ‘eyes-cream’ sandwich made with, you guessed it, fisheyes in the ice cream and fish bones in the cake.
That wasn’t the only treat for the audience, with Eleven Madison Park’s Daniel Humm sharing a vivid green celtuce cocktail and New York chef sensation Kwame Onwuachi providing a taste of his childhood with his take on a Cosmic Brownie.
Billy Wagner and Micha Schäfer from Nobelhart & Schmutzig in Berlin shocked the audience with some of their radical plans to shake up restaurant culture, including sharing out dishwasher duties between chefs (an audible gasp was heard), while Champions of Change winner Jessica Rosval introduced a video about her and Caroline Caporossi’s initiative, Roots, in Modena, Italy, which is supporting migrant women into the hospitality industry. Malena Martínez of research body Mater Iniciativa also took to the stage to share some fascinating insights into ancient Peruvian ingredients and cooking techniques.
Disfrutar named The World’s Best Restaurant
On 5 June 2024, Disfrutar in Barcelona was named The World’s Best Restaurant, sponsored by S.Pellegrino & Acqua Panna. During an emotional moment on stage, wearing the signature red 50 Best scarf, provided by Aspire Lifestyles, co-owner and chef Eduard Xatruch said: “We want to dedicate this award to the gastronomy in our country, and to all the people who worked and keep working to build this marvellous profession.” Summing up a huge evening, fellow co-owner and chef Oriol Castro described the monumental win: “Amazing. Incredible. Un momento unico.”
Glory days
Not only were the 100 finest restaurants on earth celebrated in true Vegas style, the special award winners had their big moments in the spotlight too. Nina Métayer won The World's Best Pastry Chef Award, sponsored by Sosa; Pablo Rivero of Don Julio was named Beronia World's Best Sommelier; Mitsuharu ‘Micha’ Tsumura took home the Estrella Damm Chefs’ Choice Award; Australian legend Neil Perry won the Woodford Reserve Icon Award; Janaína Torres of A Casa do Porco was crowned The World’s Best Female Chef 2024; and João Diamante and Caroline Caporossi and Jessica Rosval were celebrated as the Champions of Change 2024.
Restaurants took home special awards, too. Plénitude achieved the Gin Mare Art of Hospitality Award; rising 24 places on the list, The Chairman earned the Highest Climber Award, sponsored by Highstreet World; Kato in Los Angeles was confirmed as winner of the Resy One To Watch Award 2024; and Nobelhart & Schmutzig took home the Sustainable Restaurant Award, which is audited by the Sustainable Restaurant Association.
Once-in-a-lifetime dining experiences
What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas, as they say. This is exactly what happened with the incredible series of once-in-a-lifetime dining experiences that took place on and off the Strip throughout the week, presented in partnership with Resy and American Express. Teams from 25 different restaurants from around the world – including Le Du and Potong in Bangkok, Brat in London, Quique Dacosta in Dénia, Spain, Piazza Duomo in Alba, Italy, Atomix in New York, Rosetta in Mexico City, and Las Vegas favourites Sparrow + Wolf, Casa Playa, Wakuda and Bazaar Meat – jumped into kitchens together to create exciting, collaborative menus.
On the final night, the superstars were in town for a show like no other. Held at the Lakeside restaurant at Wynn, The French Laundry’s Thomas Keller, Daniel Humm and Dominique Roy from Eleven Madison Park, Dominique Crenn of Atelier Crenn, Junghyun ‘JP’ Park from Atomix, Kyle Connaughton from SingleThread, Dominique Ansel and Pía Salazar from Nuema formed the ultimate culinary supergroup. It was a greatest hits show, with everything from EMP’s maitake mushroom skewer and truffle tart to Ansel’s strawberries and cream, all paired with exquisite wines including Promontory Cabernet Sauvignon 2016 and Hundred Acre Fortification 2008.
Feeding the world's best chefs
How do you keep the world’s best chefs and restaurateurs fed and watered at The World’s 50 Best Restaurants awards? With some brilliant bites cooked by the chefs at Wynn. Over the various events, guests enjoyed everything from Red 8 chef Jingang Zhang’s Peking duck with Kaviari Kristal Caviar and hoisin sauce, to Terrace Pointe Café chef Manny Sanchez’s ancho chilli smoked brisket slider with buttermilk cheddar biscuit and fresno jicama slaw. A tasting of Jaén Selección’s early harvest extra virgin olive oils highlighted the subtle yet still noticeable differences in flavour and character between bottles.
Cheers to the bar talent
Across the week, chefs and guests were treated to drinks from some top bartending talent. Local Las Vegas favourite Herbs & Rye (No.28 on North America’s 50 Best Bars 2024) dropped in to Chefs’ Feast to refresh and cool down guests with a frozen Goblin (Gin Mare, Riesling, kiwi puree, honeydew juice, lime juice, chia seed, Three Cents Aegean Tonic); and Artemis (coconut-washed Woodford Reserve Double Oak, vanilla-infused amaro, illycaffè syrup, bitters), served in stunning Nude glassware.
Peter Sánchez from Arca in Tulum (No.37 on North America’s 50 Best Bars 2024) was also in town, shaking a Garden Green (Hwayo, French liqueur, cacao soap, bitters, cinnamon leaf oil); and Mestzo Margarita (Tequila Ocho, orange liqueur, recado negro syrup, yukatan orange, black salt).
At the after party at Encore Beach Club, Mariena Mercer Boarini from Wynn Las Vegas assembled an all-woman cocktail shaking dream team. She was joined by Ash Miyasaki from The Let’s Go Disco & Cocktail Club, and renowned mixologists Kate Gerwin and Tammy Bouda from Albuquerque bar Happy Accidents.
The nerves from earlier in the evening were gone, replaced with people enjoying a Lion’s Share (Tequila Ocho, Ancho Reyes Verde Liqueur, fermented sugarcane, clarified lime, caramelised pineapple, electric dust); and Hot Date with a Fungi (Woodford Reserve Straight Bourbon, amaro, sherry, mushroom, date, fig). Others were found keeping things simple and toasting the evening’s celebrations with a glass of Nicolas Feuillatte Champagne or Dassai Sake.
Now discover the full list of The World’s 50 Best Restaurants 2024 from 1-50 and 51-100. The 22nd edition of the annual 1-50 ranking features restaurants from 26 territories, five continents and eight exciting new and re-entries. Spread across 23 destinations, the extended 51-100 list features some of the most esteemed dining spots in the world, with exciting new entries from Australia, Colombia, India and beyond.
The list of The World’s 50 Best Restaurants 2024 was announced at a live awards ceremony on Wednesday 5 June from Las Vegas. To stay up to date with the latest news, follow us on Instagram, Facebook, X and YouTube, and sign up to our newsletter.