Australia Holds Steady in World’s 50 Best Restaurants 2016, Will Host 2017 Edition

UPDATE: Australia will host the 2017 edition of the World’s 50 Best Restaurants list and awards in Melbourne, it has been announced. The event will mark only the second time the event has been held outside of London, after taking place in New York City this year.  Group Editor of the World’s 50 Best Restaurants, William Drew said of the decision, “There’s so much international interest in Australia as a food destination, it’s exciting for us to have the opportunity to take the events programme to this unique country!” One Australian restaurant has placed in the list of the World’s 50 Best Restaurants for 2016, with two more placing in the top 100. Melbourne’s highly acclaimed Attica has slipped one spot from #32 in 2015 to #33 in this year’s list, while Sydney’s Quay has fallen from #58 to #95. Rural Victorian restaurant Brae shot up from #87 to #65. Sadly, another Sydney restaurant, Sepia, which placed at #56 in 2015 has not been included in this year’s list. Modena, Italy’s Osteria Francescana usurped Girona, Spain’s El Celler de Can Roca for the top spot in the rankings, with the two restaurants exchanging first and second place. Both Spain and Italy will be celebrating this year’s rankings with three Spanish restaurants placing in the top 10, and four Italian joints making it into the top 50. New York’s Eleven Madison Park jumped from #5 to #3, pushing down Copehnhagen’s Noma, which sat in the #1 ranking in 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2014. Lima’s Central held onto position #4 for the second year in a row. Attica’s continued presence in the top 50 is a strong achievement in what can be a tumultuous ranking system decided by thousands of elite chefs, restauranteurs and food critics from across the world. Tulip’s DIY was the standout dish for Attica’s judges who were curious about the involvement of Australian native ingredients and wildlife in the dishes.  The 50 Best website tells the reader to expect “quite a bit” of Australian fauna in the dishes, including emu, wallaby, marron and of course, kangaroo. “References to Aussie culture and history are threaded throughout Attica’s menus, some of them more subtly than others, whether it’s in the form of “Gazza’s Vegemite pie,” wattleseed bread, halftime oranges or the Anzac marshmallow that closes proceedings.” Read 2016’s full listing at theworlds50best.com