World's 50 Best Restaurants announces its 2025 list. Here's who took the top spot
Chef Mitsuharu Tsumura's Japanese-Peruvian fusion eatery won the prestigious World's 50 Best Restaurants title.
Spain's Asador Etxebarri and Mexico City's Quintonil ranked second and third, alongside highlights like Maxime Frederic winning Best Pastry Chef.
The 50 Best list, critiqued for being elitist and opaque, faces competition from 'The List', an algorithm-based ranking launched in 2015.
Maido, a restaurant in Peru founded by chef Mitsuharu "Micha" Tsumura, was on Thursday named the best eatery in the world for 2025 by the influential but controversial World's 50 Best Restaurants list.
Founded 16 years ago, Maido features a Japanese-Peruvian fusion menu, and lunchtime diners in the sleek Lima dining room were ecstatic about the win, shouting "Maido, Maido!"
"The fusion of flavors at Maido is spectacular," the 33-year-old Valentina Mora told AFP.
Restaurants from three continents made the podium of the World's 50 Best, which was launched by a British press group to compete with France's Michelin red guides.
Asador Etxebarri - which offers Basque cooking in Atxondo, Spain - won second place and Quintonil in Mexico City was third.
Maxime Frederic, at the helm of the Cheval Blanc Paris pastry shop and head pastry chef at Plenitude, was named Best Pastry Chef.
Three Cape Town spots were named in the extended top 100 World's Best Restaurant's list.
La Colombe (55), FYN (82) and Salsify (a new entry at 88) all made the list, with La Colombe making it's 6th appearance, and FYN making it's 5th.
The 50 Best award has been presented since 2002 by media group William Reed, based on reviews by one thousand "independent experts" such as chefs, specialist journalists and restaurant owners.
The list has been criticised above all by French chefs, who accuse it of being clubby and opaque, but it is generally considered to be ahead of the Michelin guide in identifying the latest food trends.
Its detractors - French, but also Japanese and American - launched The List in 2015, a ranking of 1 000 restaurants across the world that uses an algorithm to aggregate and analyse data from more than 400 international sources.
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Guests enter through an exhibition space before reaching a marble bar lined with sculpted cakes, seasonal miniatures, and made-to-order crêpes. The space is designed to invite you in, not just to serve you. ArtSpace Café reflects a broader trend in how people experience pastry. The display isn't hidden behind a fine-dining curtain. It's open, intentional, and part of the environment. It's the kind of third space where presentation, access, and daily ritual meet in a way that doesn't flatten the food or the guest. This award isn't just about perfectly executed food. It's about how the café reframes dessert as something worth building an entire experience around. World's Most Creative Pastry Chef: Maxime Frédéric (Cheval Blanc Paris, LV Cafés) Known for elegant play and architectural detail, Maxime Frédéric crafts pastries that blur the line ... More between dessert and design at Cheval Blanc Paris and LV Cafés. Maxime Frédéric's pastry work is meticulous, but what makes it resonate is how intuitive it feels. His creations are architectural but soft, elegant but full of play. They aren't made solely for visual appeal. These treats are meant to be held, broken into, and enjoyed In a landscape that sometimes prizes visual sameness, Frédéric's recognition reflects something quieter: personal style. His work doesn't rely on scale or novelty. It builds trust with the eater—moment by moment, bite by bite. Pastry Game Changer: Pooja Dhingra (India) Pooja Dhingra, who brought macarons to Mumbai, was recognized for her entrepreneurial impact and for ... More reshaping what pastry leadership can look like. Pooja Dhingra has helped define modern pastry in India not by replicating European tradition but by building something specific to her place, her story, and her community. From her bakery, Le15, to her writing and mentorship, her approach has created room for more people to imagine themselves in the pastry world. This award doesn't just honor her products. It acknowledges the path she's built—and the many people she's helped bring along with her. Dhingra's visibility has opened doors that didn't exist a decade ago. The work is pastry, yes—but also structure, invitation, and scale. London's Pastry Scene, Reframed Claridge's wasn't the only name from London to earn recognition this year. Lily Jones, of Lily Vanilli, was honored for her originality and impact. Her bakery has long pushed against the familiar aesthetic of the upscale bakery—less pastel, more perspective. Her cakes have always felt lived in, rooted in people and place. Scoff at The Savoy was recognized as one of the most exciting new openings. It blends British dessert nostalgia with a sharper, more modern edge. It's not a museum to enjoy afternoon tea—it's an update delivered with intention. London's showing us that pastry here isn't bound to tradition. It's being reinterpreted, sometimes irreverently, but always with a clear sense of who it's for. What These Awards Reflect More than a roundup of talent, this year's LA LISTE pastry awards read like a recalibration. They reflect a shift in both who gets counted and what counts as influence. Across the honorees, there's a shared clarity of purpose—whether it's expressed through precision, playfulness, or sheer entrepreneurial grit. Many of these chefs aren't just producing beautiful work; they're rewriting the rules of visibility, value, and voice in a category that has long rewarded refinement overreach. That 60% of this year's winners are women is not a footnote—it's a reshaping of the frame. The selections show a growing appetite for pastry that does more than sit prettily on a plate. They show us a global field no longer tethered to the traditions of Western haute pâtisserie but open to interpretation, expression, and community-led growth. In an era where food often doubles as language, acting as a mirror, explaining who we are, what we long for, and how we choose to show up—these wins point toward a version of pastry that's more porous, more personal, and far less willing to stay in the background. That LA LISTE chose to crown Claridge's—an open café, not a cloistered salon—as its World's Best Pastry Shop feels like part of that message. What's visible now isn't just the pastry. It's the people, the path, and the shift itself. About LA LISTE LA LISTE is best known for its Top 1,000 Restaurants ranking, using a data-driven system that compiles reviews, guidebooks, and expert input. Its Pastry Special Awards reflect more than technical skill—they recognize chefs and owners making meaningful contributions to their communities, cultures, and the broader conversation around dessert. Claridge's ArtSpace Café earned the top spot this year, but the deeper story is about what that win represents: a pastry shop made for wandering into, not waiting for. A space designed to surprise and slow you down. These iconic accolades don't just recognize the best—they help redefine what excellence looks like. Explore the full list of LA LISTE 2025 Pastry Special Award winners here.
