Osteria Francescana named world’s best restaurant; top 20 spot for Hong Kong’s Amber
Italian winner Massimo Bottura appeals to fellow top chefs to help run Rio soup kitchen for Olympics; Amber’s Richard Ekkebus hails its rise from 38th place as ‘the fruit of 11 years of hard work’
Waving a cloth with the colours of the Italian flag, Massimo Bottura of Osteria Francescana in Modena, Italy took the stage in New York to accept the World’s 50 Best Restaurants award for running the planet’s No.1 restaurant.
Osteria Francescana, second on the 2015 list, switched places with El Celler de Can Roca in Girona, Spain, run by three brothers, Joan (the chef), Jordi (pastry chef) and Josep (sommelier), which was last year’s number one.
Speaking after the event, held at Cipriani Wall Street, Bottura said: “Last year I felt we weren’t ready but this year we were. We built a team and the office, the front room and the kitchen were all on the same level. The energy and the creativity are so good.”
The chef mentioned his plans to start a soup kitchen in Rio de Janeiro during the Olympics. “I want every chef in the world to be down there, cooking for people in need. This is what we need to do. Culture, knowledge, consciousness and a sense of responsibility – this is what the modern chef is.