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There’s one Cape Town-based eatery that remains relatively unbeaten when it comes to being acknowledged by the World’s 50 Best Restaurants organisation.

That is Cape Town’s La Colombe, which has been voted in the Top 50 in the world again – and the best in Africa – on the reputable 2024 list of The World’s 50 Best Restaurants.

The awards – considered the ‘Oscars of global fine dining’ per CNN – were handed out at a ceremony at the Wynn in Las Vegas on Wednesday evening, with Barcelona’s Disfrutar walking away with the top prize.

Coming in at number two was Asador Etxebarri of Atxondo, not far from the Spanish port city of Bilbao, with Paris’ Table by Bruno Verjus squeezed into third place and yet another restaurant from Spain, Madrid’s Diverxo, taking the fourth spot. Coming in at fifth was Lima’s Maido.

The list is compiled based on the votes of the World’s 50 Best Restaurants Academy, which is made up of 1,080 international restaurant industry experts including food writers and chefs, in 27 regions around the world.

La Colombe was voted the 49th best restaurant in the world for 2024!

 

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“Taking guests on a gastronomic voyage in an atmospheric, treehouse-like setting atop the Silvermist Wine Estate (following a move from Constantia Uitsig in 2014), La Colombe is the grande dame of Cape Town dining,” per the 50 Best list, adding that chef James Gaag’s swoon-inducing dishes feature all manner of culinary theatre.

“Think smoking Cape Malay snacks, tuna ‘La Colombe’ – a tinned miniature yellowfin tuna creation featuring micro herbs, avocado puree and an umami-rich broth – and the complex, perfectly balanced masterpiece of Karoo lamb.”

The eight or 10-course tasting menus are executed with “impeccable precision”, and so they cost an arm and a leg, ranging from R1095 p.p. for the Winter Lunch Menu to R1995 p.p. for the Chef’s Menu.

But the “playful yet approachable” experience makes it all well worth it.

The other award-winning and internationally renowned Cape Town restaurant to make the list is FYN restaurant, the upscale dining establishment in the heart of the city. This year marks the fourth consecutive nod for FYN on the list, with the restaurant clinching the 60th spot in the esteemed rankings that include the extended 51-100 list.

Last year, FYN secured the 75th position on the list while La Colombe made it at number 94. The year before that Wolfgat came in at 90th and La Colombe landed at 56th in the best 51–100 global restaurant ranking, while FYN made it to the 37th spot on the 2022 World’s 50 Best Restaurants list.

Check out the list of the world’s 50 best restaurants for 2024 below:

[source:CNN]