Asador Etxebarri Tops the 2026 Ranking of the World’s Best Restaurants
The Basque restaurant rose from second place to claim the top spot, while Bangkok landed five restaurants on the list and Lima placed three.
Photo: Courtesy of World’s 50 Best
Asador Etxebarri, the Basque restaurant where chef-owner Victor Arguinzoniz cooks over a wood fire, has been named the world’s best restaurant for 2026. The restaurant in Axpe, a village in Spain’s Atxondo municipality, rose from No. 2 last year to take the top spot at the November 4 ceremony at Lima’s Teatro Municipal. Gaggan in Bangkok came in second, followed by Alchemist in Copenhagen.
At Asador Etxebarri, a 14-course tasting menu shows how much range Arguinzoniz gets from the grill. “Helmed by Victor Arguinzoniz, the team’s dedication to transforming simple, high-quality ingredients into sophisticated dishes has captivated the culinary world,” said Rikki Tidball, managing director of events for The 50.
For travelers planning a trip around a few standout meals, several cities had strong showings: Bangkok placed four restaurants on the list, with Sorn (No. 12), Sühring (No. 14), and Nusara (No. 18) joining Gaggan. Copenhagen had three, including Kadeau, which climbed 33 places to No. 8, the biggest jump in this year’s ranking.
Latin America accounted for 11 of the top 50. Mexico City’s Quintonil, where chef Jorge Vallejo builds his menu around seasonal Mexican ingredients, led the region at No. 4. Host city Lima placed three restaurants on the list, with Kjolle at No. 7, Mérito at No. 13, and Mayta at No. 45. Lima’s Maido, the 2025 winner, joined the ranking’s Best of the Best hall of fame, which makes past winners ineligible for future editions.
São Paulo’s Tuju debuted at No. 16, the highest of this year’s 11 first-time entries, and also took home the Art of Hospitality Award. In New York, Atomix ranked No. 11 and was named the best restaurant in North America. (Its chef, Junghyun Park, also won the Chefs’ Choice Award, voted on by his peers.)
The ranking spans 28 territories across six continents. Other regional winners included Dubai’s Trèsind Studio (No. 28) for the Middle East, Cape Town’s La Colombe (No. 35) for Africa, and Sydney’s Saint Peter (No. 50) for Oceania.
The 50 Best Restaurants of 2026
- Asador Etxebarri — Atxondo
- Gaggan — Bangkok
- Alchemist — Copenhagen
- Quintonil — Mexico City
- Wing — Hong Kong
- The Chairman — Hong Kong
- Kjolle — Lima
- Kadeau — Copenhagen
- Diverxo — Madrid
- Plénitude — Paris
- Atomix — New York
- Sorn — Bangkok
- Mérito — Lima
- Sühring — Bangkok
- Odette — Singapore
- Tuju — São Paulo
- Mingles — Seoul
- Nusara — Bangkok
- Jan — Munich
- Piazza Duomo — Alba
- Meet the Bund — Shanghai
- Boragó — Santiago
- Vyn — Skillinge
- Al Gatto Verde — Modena
- Lasai — Rio de Janeiro
- Masque — Mumbai
- Reale — Castel di Sangro
- Trèsind Studio — Dubai
- Enigma — Barcelona
- Steirereck — Vienna
- Celele — Cartagena
- Potong — Bangkok
- Elkano — Getaria
- Le Coquillage — Saint-Méloir-des-Ondes
- La Colombe — Cape Town
- Ru Yuan — Hangzhou
- Nuema — Quito
- Atelier Moessmer Norbert Niederkofler — Brunico
- Schloss Schauenstein — Fürstenau
- Jordnær — Copenhagen
- Onjium — Seoul
- Bozar — Brussels
- Le Calandre — Rubano
- Don Julio — Buenos Aires
- Mayta — Lima
- El Chato — Bogotá
- Le Louis XV – Alain Ducasse — Monte Carlo
- Ikoyi — London
- Naar — Kasauli
- Saint Peter — Sydney
