La Monnaie de Paris, like several museums and monuments – such as the Hôtel de la marine with the Cordon bleu cooking workshops, the Baccarat museum with the Ducasse restaurant and bar, or the Quai Branly museum with the gourmet restaurant Les Ombres — has become a temple of art linked to culinary art. Thanks to French chef Guy Savoy, the restaurant located at Monnaie de Paris is the best in the world for the eighth consecutive year. A ranking announced by La Liste, proclaimed “best gastronomic selection in the world”. But this restaurant is not the only winner, nine establishments from seven countries share the share of the pie.
With a score of 99.5/100, chef Guy Savoy’s two-star restaurant is once again in pole position. Arnaud Donckele, chef of the La Vague d’or restaurant in Saint-Tropez, joins him on this podium, alongside seven other American, English, Japanese, Swiss, Chinese and German tables. Le Bernardin (United States), L’Enclume (Great Britain), Lung King Heen (Hong Kong), Cheval Blanc by Peter Knogl (Switzerland), Matsukawa (Tokyo), SingleThread (United States) and Schwarzwaldstube (Germany) . In total, seven countries share first place.
Arnaud Donckele Plénitude’s second restaurant in Paris is in second place on La Liste with a score of 99/100.
The algorithm, a new critic?
The Quai d’Orsay created La Liste in 2015 to compete with the British company William Reed Business Media’s ranking, The World’s 50 Best Restaurants. From different sources including gastronomic guides, customer reviews and press articles, an algorithm performs the ranking.
The list references 35,000 restaurants in 200 countries thanks to this algorithm which does not need to travel to test or check reviews. Instead of a top 50, there is the possibility of making an impressive ranking of 1000 addresses. Can we really trust it? The List, which wants to be “the ranking of rankings”, says it itself, it is based on other rankings.
Gastrodiplomacy, soft power
The ceremony for this result took place this Monday, November 25 at the Ministry of Europe and Foreign Affairs in Paris. An unlikely place for a culinary awards ceremony, unless we think about the political and economic issues of gastronomy. Apart from music, gastronomy is one of the main assets that a country can use to extend its international influence, what we call soft power.
According to Philippe Faure, president and founder of La Liste, gastronomy “is very similar to tennis”. “For eight or ten years, it only happened between three or four restaurateurs, the Nadal, Federer or Djokovic of the kitchens.” Philippe Faure also underlines in comments recognized by AFP “a considerable push from Korea, superficially known in France for its ramen”. “I’ve seen some amazing things” and “chefs who want to enter the world’s gastronomic elite,” he enthuses. For him, Asia is the continent which is evolving the most in the ranking.
Guy Savoy and Hello Kitty, an unexpected invitation
Two months ago, Hello Kitty celebrated its 50th anniversary with Guy Savoy in the restaurant of the Hôtel de la Monnaie. Guy Savoy received the character of Sanrio in his lair and adapted one of his summer dishes, the “very little pea”, in honor of the princess of the day. This unusual collaboration proves the international reputation of Guy Savoy’s restaurant.
Soft power has no artistic boundaries, and neither do our taste buds. As La Liste states, we are in a period of “transition opening the way to a gastronomy centered on pleasure. »
