Watching for the results of the World’s Best Restaurants is always exciting. But when it’s for Latin America, it starts to feel personal. Here’s a quick rundown of the Top 50 Restaurants in Latin America.
On September 26, 2016, the fourth annual awards were announced for restaurants from all over Latin America and as in past years, the Southern Cone countries (Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Paraguay and Uruguay) performed quite well, and there were some standout winners from nearby culinary powerhouse Peru, as well, as up from Bolivia, where Kamilla Seidler won best female chef for her work with the restaurant Gustú, a word that means flavor in Quechua, an indigenous language spoken in that country.
Another standout winner was homegrown (to us in Santiago) winners 99 Restaurante’s climb of 24 places over last year’s showing, coming it at number 22 this year. And 99’s Gustavo Saez won best pastry chef in Latin America, so it was a double win for this relatively new restaurant.
And it’s not all big cities in the top 50. For those who like smaller settings. Francis Mallman’s restaurant 1884 in the Argentine wine capital of Mendoza came in at number 42, and Parador La Huella in Uruguay’s exclusive beachfront town, José Ignacio came in at number 23.
In the top five restaurants there was just a little bit of movement from previous years, so there aren’t that many surprises. Lucky for us, the top four are here in South America. In ascending order, they are Boragó in Santiago, Chile, D.O.M. in Sao Paulo, Brazil, and Maido and Central in Lima, Peru.
Felicitaciones to all this year’s winning restaurants and chefs!
