Elite Traveler May-June 2015

INSPIRE 100 TOP RESTAURANTS

17 Pujol Mexico City, Mexico Head chef: Enrique Olvera 2014/13 18 Restaurant Vendôme Cologne, Germany Head chef: JoachimWissler 2014/21 19 Hof van Cleve Kruishoutem, Belgium Head chef: Peter Goossens 2014/19 20 La Vague d'Or Saint-Tropez, France Head chef: César Ramirez 2014/70

24 Le Calandre Padua, Italy Head chef: Massimiliano Alajmo 2014/36 25 Dinner by Heston Blumenthal London, UK Head chef: Heston Blumenthal 2014/23 26 Nihonryori RyuGin Tokyo, Japan Head chef: Seiji Yamamoto 2014/40 27 Jean-Georges New York, US Head chef: Jean-Georges Vongerichten 2014/20 28 Mugaritz San Sebastián, Spain Head chef: Andoni Luis Aduriz 2014/22 29 7 Chome Kyoboshi Tokyo, Japan Head chef: Shigeya Sakakibara 2014/52 30 Villa Crespi Novara, Italy Head chef: Antonino Cannavacciuolo NEW ENTRY

TRENDS What's hot and what's not

To judge by the highest new entry (Italy's Villa Crespi) and the hottest young chef (Spain's Eneko Atxa, Young Chef of the Year), it would appear that the old European order, remains imperious. But regardless of how well Cannavacciuolo's sensational Villa Crespi, the real story in this year's list is happening much further to the west. The rise of the fine dining scene across America has been astronomical. There are food scenes buzzing in cities across the country. While traditional hot spots such as New York and San Francisco still dominate, the US entries are more widespread than ever, covering Chicago, St Helena, Los Gatos and Charleston. Indeed, for the first time since Elite Traveler began compiling its list of the world's favorite dining spots, the US has more entries than any other country. And to put this into some kind of perspective, the US also has more entries in the Top 100 than the two countries (Spain and the UK) that came joint third combined. With a total of nine new entries, the US overshadowed the rest of the world (there were only 17 new entries in total). Grant Achatz and his outstanding Alinea may (for the fourth year in a row) be once again top of the heap, but if anything epitomizes the shifts and trends this year, it's that his new outfit, Next, is also one of the highest new entries. Elsewhere, the Asian food scene continues to improve, although there are fewer new entries this year from China and Japan (which dominated the new arrivals to last year's list). And, an honorable mention, of course, to France, where fine food remains an obsession and a source of national pride. RC Atxa is cooking in Spain, or the wonders on offer at Antonino

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21 Aqua Wolfsburg, Germany Head chef: Sven Elverfeld 2014/18 22 Restaurant Guy Savoy Paris, France Head chef: Guy Savoy 2014/25

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23 Da Vittorio Bergamo, Italy Head chef: Enrico and Roberto Cerea 2014/72