The Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants 2014 was announced on February 24. The event, one of the biggest in the fine dining scene, unveils this year’s 50 best restaurants in the region as voted by over 900 international restaurant industry experts of The Diners Club® World’s 50 Best Restaurants Academy.
Thanks to Diners Club International®, the Official Financial Services Sponsor of Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants this year, I had the rare privilege to attend the gala event that took place at the luxurious Capella Singapore.
In conjunction with the main event, a Diners Club International pre-event reception was held at Bob’s Bar at the Capella.
Eduardo Tobon, President of Diners Club International® graced the event along with Chef Ivan Li, winner of the prestigious Diners Club® Lifetime Achievement Award winner for Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants 2014.
As a prelude to the fine dining awards ceremony, we got to partake in a range of delightful canapés and cocktails in the beautiful alfresco setting.
A roundtable session was held as Chef Li took questions from a select group of journalists and bloggers at this exclusive session.
As the direct descendant of a chef who cooked for Empress Cixi during the late 19th century, Li spent most of his 30-year career preserving the heritage of Chinese imperial cuisine. The strong restaurant empire he built under Family Li Imperial Cuisine boasts a celebrity clientele that includes Bill Gates, Bill Clinton and even Mick Jagger. The restaurant is #46 on the Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants 2014.
With locations in Melbourne, Tokyo and Taipei, Li has to adapt his recipes to incorporate the best local ingredients. He places even higher importance on the training of his chefs. Passion, Li says, is the most important ingredient that makes a good chef.
When asked how long he took to master cooking, the father of three daughters admitted that he’s spent all his life in the craft. This point really hit home. For a master chef who has already enjoyed many successes in his field, not only has he never stopped learning, he also dedicates himself to training the next generation.
If you ever visit a Family Li restaurant, you will be treated to exotic delicacies that have endured the test of time. His menu today features modern alternatives that preserve the original flavour without compromising the quality. One example is the lobster, which was not served back then.
Guess what dish he would most love to try in Singapore? Hint: It is a spicy dish and comprises a certain crustacean with eight legs.
We then move on to the red carpet, which is now brimming with celebrity chefs, VIP guests, bigwigs in the fine dining scene and members of the press toting cameras and recording equipment. This is like the Oscars equivalent for the restaurant industry.
It is difficult not to gaze starry-eyed at the top chefs here, including Yoshihiro Narisawa, whose Tokyo restaurant topped the Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants list last year, and chef-owner André Chiang, who picked up the respected Chefs’ Choice Award this year, based on votes from fellow head chefs.
At the centre of attention is this magnificent ice sculpture, featuring the Merlion and Singapore skyline. People would wait patiently for their turn to capture a cool photographic moment.
I had a chance to share a few moments with the lovely ladies from Diners Club International, Judy Karlin Rubin, Senior Manager of Global Product Development, and Chrysoula Economopoulos, Manager of Digital Marketing & Communications.
As we had already been conversing with each other on Twitter, it was wonderful meeting with Miss Chrysoula in person for the first time. She had flown in for the event from Chicago, and is one member of the team behind all the exciting #DCat50Best updates on @DinersClub.
Finally, the Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants awards ceremony begins. China leads the list with 16 establishments ranked, followed by 10 entries from Japan and 8 from Singapore. The 2014 list welcomes 10 new entries, including first-time representation from restaurants in Korea and Taiwan.
Chef Li’s Family Li Imperial Cuisine makes it to the list for the first time, coming in at No.46. Here, he receives his Lifetime Achievement Award on stage from Eduardo Tobon.
From Singapore, Imperial Treasure and Waku Ghin stand in at No.40 and No.7 respectively. Imperial Treasure is known for its authentic Beijing Peking duck while Waku Ghin is a Japanese celebrity-chef restaurant at The Shoppes at Marina Bay Sands.
Nahm restaurant in Bangkok, Thailand, takes the coveted top spot. Runner-up is last year’s winner and the current Best Restaurant in Japan, Yoshihiro Narisawa’s Les Créations de Narisawa. Third place goes to Gaggan, also from the Land of Smiles.
Below is the full list of Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants 2014.
1 Nahm, Bangkok, S.Pellegrino Best Restaurant in Thailand
2 Narisawa, Tokyo, S.Pellegrino Best Restaurant in Japan
3 Gaggan, Bangkok, Thailand
4 Amber, Hong Kong, S.Pellegrino Best Restaurant in China
5 Nihonryori Ryugin, Tokyo, Japan
6 Restaurant Andre, S.Pellegrino Best Restaurant in Singapore and Chefs’ Choice Award
7 Waku Ghin, Singapore
8 Ultraviolet, Shanghai, China
9 Lung King Heen, Hong Kong, China
10 8 1/2 Otto E Mezzo Bombana, Hong Kong, China
11 Mr And Mrs Bund, Shanghai, China
12 Iggy’s, Singapore
13 Caprice, Hong Kong, China
14 Les Amis, Singapore
15 Bo Innovation, Hong Kong, China
16 Ishikawa, Tokyo, Japan
17 Jaan, Singapore
18 L’atelier De Joel Robuchon Hong Kong, China
19 Fook Lam Moon, Hong Kong, China, Highest Climber up 29 places
20 Jungsik, Seoul, S.Pellegrino Best Restaurant in Korea and Highest New Entry
21 Sra Bua By Kiin Kiin, Bangkok, Thailand
22 Quintessence, Tokyo, Japan
23 Tippling Club, Singapore (NEW ENTRY)
24 Le Moût Restaurant, Taichung, S.Pellegrino Best Restaurant in Taiwan
25 L’effervescence, Tokyo, Japan (NEW ENTRY)
26 Fu1015, Shanghai, China
27 Bukhara, New Delhi, S.Pellegrino Best Restaurant in India
28 Bo.Lan, Bangkok, Thailand
29 Indian Accent, New Delhi, India
30 Dum Pukht, New Delhi, India
31 Issaya Siamese Club, Bangkok, Thailand (NEW ENTRY)
32 Varq, New Delhi, India
33 Hubin Road, Hangzhou, China
34 Takazawa, Tokyo, Japan
35 Shinji By Kanesaka, Singapore
36 Wasabi, Mumbai, India
37 Eat Me, Bangkok, Thailand
38 Sukiyabashi Jiro, Tokyo, Japan (NEW ENTRY)
39 Robuchon Au Dome, Macau
40 Imperial Treasure Super Peking Duck, Singapore
41 Sawada, Tokyo, Japan (NEW ENTRY)
42 Hajime Restaurant, Osaka, Japan
43 Sushi Saito, Tokyo, Japan
44 Nihonbashi, Colombo, S.Pellegrino Best Restaurant in Sri Lanka
45 Yardbird, Hong Kong, China
46 Family Li Imperial Cuisine, Shanghai, China (NEW ENTRY)
47 Sarong, Bali, S.Pellegrino Best Restaurant in Indonesia
48 Franck Bistro, Shanghai, China
49 Karavalli, Bangalore, India
50 Tenku Ryugin, Hong Kong, China (NEW ENTRY and ‘ONE TO WATCH’)
Here are the 8 Singapore restaurants that made it to the Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants 2014 list:
6 Restaurant André, S.Pellegrino Best Restaurant in Singapore and Chefs’ Choice Award
7 Waku Ghin, Singapore
12 Iggy’s, Singapore
14 Les Amis, Singapore
17 Jaan, Singapore
23 Tippling Club, Singapore (NEW ENTRY)
35 Shinji By Kanesaka, Singapore
40 Imperial Treasure Super Peking Duck, Singapore
Big names like Restaurant André, Iggy’s, Les Amis and Jaan make the list as before. Tippling Club is a new addition. What really surprises me is that Gunther’s is not recognised. I feel this French fine dining restaurant at least warrants a place in the top 50.
The awards ceremony ended with an after-party filled with even more canapés, finger food, desserts and champagne.
Many thanks to everyone at Diners Club International for the opportunity to attend the event and speak with a top chef in the roundtable discussion. It has been a huge privilege to be at Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants 2014 and to be able to share live updates from the event. I am so excited for and hope to attend the same event for 2015, and hopefully the even bigger World’s 50 Best Restaurants someday.
What do you think of the rankings for the Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants 2014? Leave your thoughts in the comments.
In the meantime, continue to check out the Diners Club BelieveBelong Blog for more updates on the Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants 2014.
