Chefs compete for national excellence in culinary expression
Asia's largest food competition

This season has come again this year. There are now many world-class cooking competitions such as Michelin, Goemilot, Young Chef, and Bocuse d'Or, but among them, chefs' ability to communicate and express themselves, as well as the story told by the food and restaurant, are the most recognized. The ``World's 50 Best Restaurants'' competition is well-known. San Pellegrino and Acqua Panna serve as international sponsors, and the award ceremony for Asia's 50 Best Restaurants, which can be considered a prelude to the competition, is traditionally held around this time every year.

The unique feature of this competition is that you can get a glimpse of the restaurant industry at its "most real moment." Often referred to as the ``Academy Awards of Gourmet Food'' or ``Oscar Awards of Gastronomy,'' chefs and restaurant staff work together as a team to create their ideal style of food using a variety of methods and techniques. The way they approach consumers with beautiful visuals can be likened to ``fashion week in the food world.'' Every year, it is customary for food journalists, food influencers, and famous chefs from all over Asia to gather at the awards ceremony venue and have a lively time, and the atmosphere is similar to those who gather at fashion weeks in Paris and New York. There is.

However, this time it was a quiet day, in contrast to the usual gaiety. Due to the serious situation of the new coronavirus infection that has engulfed the world, the official event has been postponed, and the results of "Asia's 50 Best Restaurants" by the British "World's 50 Best Restaurants" committee will be announced. The event will be held as a virtual event streamed online across Asia.

Normally, no less than 1000 people would gather in a large venue, and in a fit of excitement and enthusiasm, the 50 restaurants that received the most votes that year would be announced. This year, the ceremony was scheduled to be held in Saga Prefecture, the first time the competition has been held in Japan since it began. In light of the novel coronavirus outbreak, which shows no signs of ending, the Saga Prefecture event was canceled at the last minute, and the organizers, event staff, and sponsors debated until the last minute how to announce the results. . Before discussing the results, I would like to inform you that as a result, the event was held in an unprecedented way: an online stream.

Achieved results unmatched by other countries
What are the 12 restaurants in Japan?

Takanori Nakamura, Chairman of Japan's Council for the World's 2020 Best Restaurants, said, ``The results of 12 were remarkable, especially the efforts of Japanese restaurants.As many as XNUMX restaurants made it into the ranking. This is the highest number of awards among all countries in Asia."

Singapore's Odette took the top spot for the second year in a row, while Hong Kong's The Chairman, which ranked 11th last year, jumped up the rankings to take second place. Just like last year, Japan's "Den" took 10rd place, keeping its position as the number one Japanese team for the third year in a row. Furthermore, Tokyo's Florilege (10th place), NARISAWA (XNUMXth place), and Osaka's La Cime (XNUMXth place) were also included in the top XNUMX, which was an amazing feat.

以降、「イル・リストランテ ルカ・ファンティン（17位）」「日本料理 龍吟（24位）」「茶禅華（29位）」「オード（0de）（35位）」「ラ・メゾン・ドゥ・ラ・ナチュール・ゴウ（40位）」「鮨 さいとう（46位）」「レフェルヴェソンス（48位）」「イヌア（Inua）（49位）」という、日本勢の健闘ぶりにはぜひご注目を。選ばれた50軒のうち新エントリーは7軒だったが、うち２軒が前出の「オード」「イヌア」であったというのも、誇るべき結果だ。

We must keep an eye on the situation in other countries as well. This is a true testament to food trends in Asia, and it's interesting to see how things can change so much even in a single year, such as the restaurant situation in Hong Kong and Macau, where new entries by young chefs and old and new restaurants seem to have been replaced. be.

I would also like to mention that Japanese teams were very active in the category awards. Yoshihiro Murata of Kyoto's Kikunoi, who is praised by many chefs as a key figure in spreading the wonders of Japanese cuisine, especially the appeal of dashi, to the world, has been awarded the American Express Award in recognition of his contribution to the culinary world. Awarded the Icon Award. Yusuke Takada of Osaka's La Cime, who came in 10th place, received the Inedit Dam Chef's Choice Award for receiving the most votes from his fellow chefs.

Nakamura also expressed his heartfelt praise for the fact that, 18 years later than in other countries, the day has finally come for a Japanese female chef to take the stage. ``Natsuko Shoji of été in Tokyo has finally won a wonderful award.The ``Valrhona Asia's Best Pastry Chef Award'' is given to the pastry chef deemed to be the most outstanding in all of Asia.Fruit Ms. Shoji is known for her signature cakes, but she is also a restaurant chef.I think she has her sights set on becoming the first Japanese female chef in the rankings.I have high hopes for her.

Restaurants will return to normalcy as soon as possible
I hope the day will come when I can get it back

Generally speaking, it's ``the wonders of Japanese restaurants that can proudly show their hearts to the world,'' but Nakamura says that his heart is still not completely satisfied. “While I freely praise the great achievements of all the chefs, I honestly feel that Japanese restaurants did not come out on top again this year, which may be frustrating.If you are a foodie who loves the Japanese restaurant industry, then like all of you, However, I hope you will understand that this is because Japan is a country with many excellent restaurants. In Japan, the votes cast by voters are inevitably dispersed.However, in cities in other countries where so-called "gastronomy" is not so popular yet, there are stores that you should visit when you come to this city. One possible reason is that this situation is affecting the number of votes.It may be a luxury problem unique to a country with a high level of food.

The 2020 ``Asia's 50 Best Restaurants'' list has had its share of troubles, but both the chefs who made it into the ranking and the foodies around the world are saddened by the current state of the global restaurant industry, which has fallen into an unimaginable state of emergency. I wonder if it is. Hiroyasu Kawate of Tokyo's Florilege, who placed 7th this time, was asked to comment on his award and said the following. I would like to share with you the words that probably represent the hearts of chefs around the world.

``For us chefs, the happiest thing is to cook food, and then to enjoy it to the customers.Many of our colleagues from other countries have been forced to close their restaurants. , even in Japan, we don't know when this will happen. I hope that everyone can return to their daily lives where they can cook like before."

(Titles omitted)

Takanori Nakamura
"World's Best 50 Restaurants" Japan Council Chairman
columnist
Born in Hayama, Kanagawa Prefecture. She is active in magazines, newspapers, and TV, focusing on fashion, culture, gourmet food, travel, hotels, and other luxury lifestyle themes. In 2007, he was awarded the title of Chevalier of the French Order of Champagne. In 2010, he was also awarded the title of Knight of Cava by Spain. Since 2013, he has served as the Japan Council Chairman for the World's 50 Best Restaurants. He is a XNUMXth dan kendo teacher. He is a tea ceremony professor at the Dainippon Tea Ceremony Society. His books include ``THE CIGAR LIFE,'' co-authored with Mamoru Hiromi and Takanori Nakamura (Ota Publications), and ``Pilgrimage Training of Famous Restaurant Recipes - The Secret of the Taste I Learned by Making It'' (Sekai Bunkasha).