Last Tuesday (March 23), the people of 50 Best revealed the extension of Asia's 50 Best Restaurants, which gave us the look into some shocking (and questionable) debuts and drops of renowned restaurants in Bangkok. Brace yourself and see it with your own eyes here.
Anyway, as they promised, the UK-based media has finally announced the complete list of 50 dining spots across the continent of Asia today, and the results are—as usual—interesting. In 2020, there were seven restaurants in the city that made it to the top 50 with the likes of Sühring (No. 6) and Le Du (No. 8).
The shocking value of 2021's edition is that some of the top 50 winners have slipped down so painfully to the other half of 50s. 80/20, for instance, slightly dips to No. 47 from No. 55. Meanwhile, Paste and Bo.lan are the two that encounter big drops.
This leaves to our anticipation to see how other remaining eateries in 2020's top 50 are doing this year, and here's the reveal.
In 2021, Thailand has the overall of six establishments in the top 50 with Chef Thitid "Ton" Tassanakajohn's Thai fine-dining Le Du snatching the highest spot at No. 4. The other five Bangkok-based restaurants are Gaggan Anand's new namesake restaurant in Sukhumvit 31, Sühring, Southern Thai eatery Sorn, Chef Thitid's chef's table-style diner Nusara, and Garima Arora's Gaa. And with two of his Bangkok ventures—Le Du and Nusara have made the cut, Chef Ton is the only chef who owns double awards on the list this year.
Elsewhere on the list, Sühring, Gaa, and Sorn still hold their places but with a small shift in the positions. Starting with Sühring, the German fine-dining eatery is the only one that's able to save the spot at No. 6. Meanwhile, Sorn moves up five spots from No. 16 last year to No. 11 this year, but Gaa—despite being recently reopened in Soi Sukhumvit 53—is placed at No. 46 (31 spots down from 2020).
Surprising news is the debut of Gaggan, an Indian fine dining restaurant by Chef Gaggan Anand, at No. 5. We'd also like to give a big round of applause to The Chairman in Hong Kong for taking the highest rank.
Now, it's time for enthusiastic foodies to go out, get that reservation from these crowned restaurants, and see why they deserve the accolades.
The top 10 best restaurants in Asia in 2021 according to the award are:
- The Chairman, Hong Kong, China
- Odette, Singapore
- Den, Tokyo, Japan
- Le Du, Bangkok, Thailand (Time Out Bangkok is co-hosting a dining series with Le Du and local beer brand Chang in April. Check out more details here.)
- Gaggan Anand, Bangkok, Thailand
- Sühring, Bangkok, Thailand
- Florilege, Tokyo, Japan
- La Cime, Osaka, Japan
- Narisawa, Tokyo, Japan
- Mingles, Seoul, South Korea
Check out the top 10 below and see the full list here.