These are the best restaurants in South Africa
Fyn in Cape Town is the best restaurant in South Africa and the whole of Africa, according to the World’s 50 Best Restaurant Awards.
Fyn – pronounced fain – retained the title from 2022 and serves a menu inspired by Japan and features ingredients sourced from the Western Cape area.
The restaurant was named the 75th-best restaurant in the world – a notable drop from 37th in the 2022 ranking.
Fyn did, however, also win the Flor de Caña Sustainable Restaurant Award 2023.
“With over 50 per cent of Fyn’s menu readily suitable for vegetarians or vegans and endemic vegetables taking centre stage, the restaurant is doubling down on its sustainable philosophy while also upholding the highest standards of flavour and technique, making it a worthy winner of the Flor de Caña Sustainable Restaurant Award 2023,” the awards said.
Its most expensive menu is the Dinner Menu which will set a customer back R1,875, excluding the R1,350 wine pairing. It features grilled springbok leg, smoked mussel chawanmushi and Ikejime yellowtail.
La Colombe, a modern French-meets-Asian restaurant also based in Cape Town, ranked 94th on the list – down from last year’s 56th.
These were the only two South African restaurants that made a list after Paternoster-based Wolfgat dropped out of the top 100 – after coming 90th in 2022.
Other award-winning South African restaurants were also not included in the World’s Best 50 rankings.
Salsify at the RoundHouse in Camp Bay, which won the fight annual fifth annual Luxe Restaurant Awards, also did not feature.
Moreover, the LivingRoom at the Summerhill Guest Estate did not feature, despite winning Restaurant of the Year at the Eat Out Awards and its Chef Johannes Richer winning Chef of the Year at the Luxe Awards.
Overall winners
Central in Lima, Peru was named the best restaurant overall at World’s 50 Best Restuarant Awards after coming second in 2022.
“As Central’s concept developed over the years, a menu took form that takes diners through 15 different Peruvian ecosystems, categorised by altitude – from 15 metres under the Pacific Ocean to 4,200 metres up in the Andes. Each dish reflects the origin of its ingredients, from Dry Valley (shrimp, loche squash, avocado) to Amazonian Water (pacu fish, watermelon and coca leaf),” the awards said.
The top ten restaurants in the world are as follows (2022 ranking in brackets):
1. Central – Lima, Peru (2)
2. Disfrutar – Barcelona, Spain (3)
3. Diverxo – Madrid, Spain (4)
4. Asador Etxebarri – Axpe, Spain (6)
5. Alchemist – Copenhagen, Denmark (18)
6. Maido – Lima, Peru (11)
7. Lido 84 – Gardone Riviera, Italy (8)
8. Atomix – New York, US (33)
9. Quintonil – Mexico City, Mexico (9)
10. Table by Bruno Verjus – Paris, France (77)
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