Culinary capitals of the world
Around the world, certain cities stand out among others as being culinary capitals. These thriving food meccas are home to many highly-rated restaurants, where head chefs churn out everything from traditional regional dishes to cutting-edge modernist cuisine. As such, many aspiring chefs dream of moving out to one of these metropolises to try and make it big.
New York, New York
As the song goes, if you can make it here, you can make it anywhere. New York City is truly a cosmopolitan metropolis, benefiting from a rich diversity of cultural influences that has shaped its food scene. The three-star restaurants in NYC tend toward modern French cuisine, with noted establishments such as Daniel, Jean Georges and Le Bernardin being particular standouts. Eleven Madison Park in the Flatiron District offers a more homegrown feel, featuring a menu that emphasizes regional ingredients and techniques.
Chicago, Illinois
The culinary capital of the Midwest, Chicago has come a long way from its steakhouse roots. For the adventurous diner, Alinea serves up groundbreaking dishes made with some of the most advanced cooking techniques on the planet. Other notable Chicago hot spots are Grace, graham elliot, L2O and Sixteen.
San Francisco, California
The tech boom has brought a lot of wealth to the San Francisco Bay Area. As a result, many high-profile restaurants have opened in the region in order to serve the new millionaire locals. Napa Valley is home to chef Thomas Keller’s French Laundry and chef Christopher Kostow’s Restaurant at Meadowood. Both holding three-star rankings, these restaurants offer up truly remarkable cuisine in the heart of California’s wine country.
Paris, France
The City of Light has a long history of being the capital of French haute cuisine. For centuries chefs have perfected their skills while working in one of the many restaurants lining Paris’ avenues.To this day, the French capital boasts a large number of world-class restaurants for the hungry traveler. L’Arpege is known for a menu that displays chef Alain Passard’s prowess in preparing vegetables. In fact, his veg-centric tasting menu has inspired a global trend of more plant life in restaurant kitchens.
Tokyo, Japan
The capital of Japan, Tokyo is an electric city known for its incredible energy. It is also home to a burgeoning food scene, currently containing the highest number of Michelin-rated restaurants in the world. If you have a passion for Asian cuisine, you owe it to yourself to check out places like Sushi Saito and Ishikawa. The latter, especially, is a good place to visit to discover the non-sushi side of Japanese cooking.
Copenhagen, Denmark
Copenhagen’s rise to the top of the culinary food chain can be traced back to the success of one restaurant in particular, Rene Redzepi’s Noma. Here, chef Redzepi only sources the most local ingredients, often foraging himself for herbs and vegetables that are growing in the wild. Other establishments such as Geranium and Kadeau are exposing the world to the wonders of Nordic cuisine.
