Announced less than one hour ago – the full list of the Best 50 Restaurants in the World. I will be updating as I gather more information for you – my readers ;^D

1. Noma

Copenhagen Denmark Noma Copenhagen website

2. El Cellar De Can Roca

Spain El Cellar De Can Roca, Girona, Spain website

REVIEW

Review of El Cellar De Can Roca from my friend Ishay Govender-Ypma

3. Mugaritz

Errenteria, Spain Mugaritz, Errenteria Spain website

4. D.O.M

Sao Paolo, Brazil D.O.M., Sao Paolo, Brazil website

5. Osteria Francescana

Modena, Italy Osteria Francescana, Modena, Italy website

6. Per Se

NYC – USA Per Se, NYC, NY USA website

7. Alinea

USA Alinea, Chicago, IL USA

8. Arzak

San Sebastian, Spain Arzak, San Sebastian, Spain website

9. Dinner Heston Blumenthal

London, UK New Dinner Heston Blumenthal, London, UK website

10. Eleven Madison Park

NYC Eleven Madison Park, NYC, NY USA website

View 2012 – Best Restaurants in the World in a larger map

11. Steirereck

Vienna – Austria Steirereck, Vienna Austria website

12. L’Atelier De Joel Robuchon

Paris L’Atelier De Joel Robuchon, Paris, France website

13. The Fat Duck

UK The Fat Duck, UK website

14. The Ledbury

UK The Ledbury, UK website

15. Le Chateaubriand

Paris, FranceLe Chateaubriand, Paris, Francewebsite

16. L’Arpege

France L’Arpege, France website

17. Pierre Gagnaire

Paris, France Pierre Gagnaire, Paris, France website

18. L’Astrance

France

19. Le Bernadin

New York Le Bernadin, NYC, NY USA website

20. Frantzen/lindeberg

Stockholm new Frantzen/lindeberg, Sweden website

Photos from the 100 Best Restaurants in the World

If you’ve got photos you’d like to share with this group, contact me on Flickr

21. Oud Sluis

Netherlands Oud Sluis, Sluis Netherlands website

22. Aqua

Wolfsburg, Germany Aqua, Wolfsburg, Germany website

23. Vendome

Germany Vendome, Germany, website

24. Mirzaur

Menton, France Mirazur, Menton,France website

25. Daniel

USA Daniel, NYC website

26. Iggys

Singapore Iggys Singapore website

27. Les Creation De Narisawa

Japan Les Creation De Narisawa website

28. Nihonryori Ryugin

Japan Nihonryori Ryugin website

29. Quay

Australia Quay Sydney, Australia website

30. Schloss Schauenstein

Switzerland Schloss Schauenstein website

31. Asador Extebarri

Spain Asador Extebarri Spain website

REVIEW

Review of Asador Extebarri from my friend Jeanine Barone

32. Le Calandre

Italy Le Calandre, Italy website

33. De Librije

Netherlands De Librije, Netherlands website

34. Faviken Magasinet

Sweden Faviken Magasinet, Sweden, website

35. Astrid Y Gaston

Peru Astrid Y Gaston website

36. Pujol

Mexico Pujol, Mexico City MEX website

37. Momofuku

USA Momofuku, NYC NY USA website

38. Biko

Mexico Biko, Mexico City, Mexico website

39. Waku Ghin

Singapore Waku Ghin, Singapore, website

40. Quique Dacosta

Spain Quique Dacosta, Spain website

41. Mathias Dahlgren

Stockholm Sweden Mathias Dahlgren, Stockholm, Sweden website

42. Hof Van Cleve

Kruishoutem Belgium Hof Van Cleve, Kruishoutem, Belgium website

43. The French Laundry

Yountville USA French Laundry, Yountville, CA USA website

44. Amber

Hong Kong – China Amber, Hong Kong, China website

45. Vila Joya

Albufeira Portugal – new Vila Joya, Albufeira, Portugal website

46. Il Canto

Siena Italy Il Canto, Siena Italy website

47. Bras

Laguiote France Bras, Laguiote France website

48. Manresa

Los Gatos USA – re-entry Manresa Los Gatos, CA, USA website

49. Geranium

Copenhagen Denmark – new Geranium, Copenhagen, Denmark website

50. Nahm

Bangkok Thailand – new Nahm, Bangkok, Thailand website

LiveStreaming the Award Ceremony

Organised by Restaurant magazine, The World’s 50 Best Restaurants list is an annual snapshot of the opinions and experiences of over 800 international restaurant industry experts. What constitutes “best” is left to the judgment of these trusted and well-travelled gourmets.

The results are a simple computation of votes. Given that this well-constructed list is based on personal experiences it can never be definitive, but we believe it is a honourable survey of current tastes and a credible indicator of the best places to eat around the globe.

Guest Author: SJ McGinley

The Titanic is one of the most famous ships in the world and its story fascinates people everywhere. Even before the James Cameron Hollywood blockbuster of 1997, the Titanic story was legendary.

The ship was built in Belfast, Northern Ireland, in the Harland and Wolff shipyard for White Star Line. Nothing like it had been seen before in terms of scale, comfort and luxury.

It sank after hitting an iceberg on 12 April 1912. It was on its maiden voyage.

Upwards of 15,000 men worked on Titanic in the Belfast shipyard. It was an incredible feat of engineering and is something the city – my city – has been proud of ever since.

That said, it has taken Belfast nearly 100 years to tell its story and capitalise on the huge interest in Titanic.

It has done so now, though, with confidence, verve and style.

Titanic Belfast opened on 31 March 2012, just in time for the 100th anniversary of the sinking of Titanic. It is a fantastic museum and visitor experience housed in a stunning building.

It is located where the Titanic was built – right across the road are the huge and still used Harland and Wolff cranes, known as Samson and Goliath.

The design of the building resembles a ship’s hull, although there is an obvious ice influence as well. Outside, on Belfast Lough, the restored Nomadic is docked. It was used to ferry passengers from the shore to the deck of Titanic.

Inside the museum there are nine galleries over five floors telling the story of Titanic’s conception, construction, launch, maiden voyage, and terrible end. This is done using multi-media displays, genuine artefacts and impressive full-scale reconstructions. Only by seeing the reconstructions did I fully appreciate the scale of this ship.

The galleries and sections on the construction and fit-out of the ship were particularly interesting – but being a Belfast man myself, I may be biased. The displays of how the interior looked were also fascinating.

The staff must also be mentioned as they were all very enthusiastic, helpful and knowledgeable.

Getting to Titanic Belfast is straightforward, although do not use the train – the station – called Titanic Quarter – is not close to the museum and the walk is unpleasant. If you have a car it is easy and there is plenty of parking. Walking from Belfast city centre will take about 30 minutes and buses run regularly.

It is not worth coming to Northern Ireland and not visiting Titanic Belfast. It is on a level of scale and quality equal to the best museums and visitor attractions in the world.

SJ McGinley is a writer and journalist from Ireland who, among other things, writes for and edits Hotels in Portrush (www.hotelsinportrush.co.uk). He has travelled extensively in the USA, Australia and Europe.