This morning Bangkok time, The World's 50 Best Restaurants announced its 2016 list at a ceremony in New York.
 
For the first time the number one slot went to Osteria Francescana in Modena, Italy, who have made the top three for the last three years and came second to El Celler de Can Roca last year.
 
Second place went to the Roca brothers’ El Celler in Girona, Spain, while New York’s Eleven Madison Park jumped from No.5 last year up to No.3 this year. Peruvian restaurant Central still holds its place at No.4 while the four-time winner Noma fell to No.5, the lowest it has placed since 2008.
 
Bangkok’s Gaggan restaurant, earlier named the best in Asia, slipped from No.10 to No.23, while Japan’s Narisawa, ranked No.2 in the regional list, made it to No.8 in the global list. David Thompson’s Nahm (No. 8 in Asia’s 50 Best list) fell to No.37 from No. 22 in 2015.
 
Since 2002, The World’s 50 Best Restaurant list has been awarding titles to exciting restaurants across the world, as voted by an international panel.
 
The list, though coveted, is controversial among chefs and industry pros for several reasons. Some people point to the questionable standard of the voting method while others doubt transparency. The list has also become highly repetitive (this year’s top five is basically last year’s top five), while many critics point to discrepencies between regional and global lists, as well as an over-representation of molecular gastronomy. 
 
But everyone loves a list—read Top Tables 2016 for our take on Bangkok's top 116 restaurants—and the more debate the better. 
 
Next year's awards are set to take place in Melbourne, Australia.
 
See the full list of winners here