If you're searching for a great place to eat in the capital tonight, look no further. A string of London haunts have been named the world's best restaurants, in an annual shortlist by a luxury travel magazine out today.
Elite Traveler listed a total of eleven UK venues in its prestigious Elite 100 Restaurants 2014 round-up, including Restaurant Gordon Ramsay and the Roux brothers' Waterside Inn in Berkshire.
Two Michelin-starred restaurants - Heston Blumenthal's The Fat Duck and The Ledbury in Notting Hill (run by head chef Brett Graham) - made the top ten shortlist.
The magazine creates the yearly rundown by surveying their readers on "their favourite restaurants and gourmet chefs of the past year."
"Food critics are very important for the business and obviously to bring the general public in, but ultimately you’re cooking for your customers and you want to give them the best pleasure and experience," Blumenthal told the publication. "So to have this recognition, after we’ve been going for nearly twenty years, it’s fantastic."
Brett Graham at The Ledbury, which was listed the ninth best restaurant in the world
Elite Traveler singled out The Ledbury, in ninth place, for offering up "superb contemporary French cuisine in a relaxed west London setting". It praised dishes such as "Cornish turbot, pigeon, Scottish langoustine and quail’s egg."
Referring to The Fat Duck, in third place, the magazine gushed: "Dishes such as ‘snail porridge’ (in reality, cured Spanish ham and shaved fennel), mustard ice cream and ‘sound of the sea’ (where diners listen to the ocean) epitomize the multi-sensory and scientific approach found here, which is as pioneering as it is magical."
Heston Blumenthal's The Fat Duck made third place
Raymond Blanc's famed Oxfordshire institution Le Manoir also got a mention, as did Michelin-starred Indian restaurant Amaya. Here is the full list of UK entries:
The World's Best Restaurants: UK entries
The Fat Duck, Berkshire (3rd place)
The Ledbury, London (9)
Dinner by Heston Blumenthal, London (23)
Restaurant Gordon Ramsay, London (24)
Le Manoir, Oxfordshire (30)
Alain Ducasse at the Dorchester, London (54)
Le Gavroche, London (74)
Amaya, London (76)
The Waterside Inn, Berkshire (94)
Nobu, London (96)
Zuma, London (99)
Raymond Blanc's Le Manoir came in 30th place
Top of the list (for the third year running) came Chicago’s only three Michelin-starred restaurant, Alinea.
"Spearheaded by master molecular gastronomist Grant Achatz, Alinea is widely considered to be in a class of its own when it comes to avant-garde fine dining," the magazine said.
Check out the top ten list of Elite's 100 Restaurants, below:
The World's Best Restaurants: Top Ten
1. Alinea, Chicago, US
2. DANIEL, New York, US
3. Fat Duck, Berkshire, UK
4. Eleven Madison, New York, US
5. Le Bernardin, New York, US
6. El Celler Can Roca, Spain
7. Azurmendi, Spain
8. La Pergola, Rome, Italy
9. The Ledbury, London, UK
10. Osteria Francescana, Italy
Words: Anna Brech, Photos: Rex Features
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