Best Restaurants in Asia

Odette, the French fine dining restaurant by Julien Royer in Singapore, has knocked Gaggan off its perch this year.

The full list - Asia’s Best Restaurants 2019:

  1. Odette, Singapore
  2. Gaggan, Bangkok
  3. Den, Tokyo
  4. Suhring, Bangkok
  5. Florilege, Tokyo
  6. Ultraviolet by Paul Pairet, Shanghai
  7. Mume, Taipei
  8. Narisawa, Tokyo
  9. Nihonryori Ryugin, Tokyo
  10. Burnt Ends, Singapore
  11. The Chairman, Hong Kong
  12. 8 1/2 Otto e Mezzo, Hong Kong
  13. Mingles, Seoul
  14. La Cime, Osaka, Japan
  15. Belon, Hong Kong
  16. Gaa , Bangkok (New entry)
  17. Indian Accent, India
  18. Il Ristorante – Luca Fantin, Tokyo
  19. Bo.lan, Bangkok
  20. Le Du, Bangkok
  21. Amber, Hong Kong
  22. Nahm, Bangkok
  23. Sazenka, Tokyo (New entry)
  24. La Maison de La Nature Goh, Fukuoka, Japan
  25. Sushi Saito, Tokyo
  26. L’Effervescence, Tokyo
  27. Jade Dragon, Macau
  28. Paste, Bangkok
  29. Fu He Hui, Shanghai
  30. RAW, Taipei
  31. Shoun Ryugin, Taipei
  32. Jaan, Singapore
  33. Les Amis, Singapore
  34. Vea, Hong Kong (New entry)
  35. Ministry of Crab, Sri Lanka
  36. Wing Lei Palace, Macau (New entry)
  37. Neighborhood, Hong Kong
  38. Lung King Heen, Hong Kong
  39. Nouri, Singapore (New entry)
  40. Waku Ghin, Singapore
  41. Toc Toc, Seoul
  42. Locavore, Bali
  43. Toyo Eatery, Manila (New entry)
  44. Seventh Son, Hong Kong (New entry)
  45. Quintessence, Tokyo
  46. Dewakan, Kuala Lumpur (New entry)
  47. Sugalabo, Tokyo
  48. Sorn, Bangkok (New entry)
  49. Corner House, Singapore
  50. Ta Vie, Hong Kong
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I bet you have tried some of them, which ones do you recommend?

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I’d only tried 13 of them - but what struck me was how “over-priced” they all seemed to be, compared to similar places in their respective cities. The Hong Kong entrants are all worth a re-visit, especially The Chairman.

I was at GAA ([Bangkok] Fusion Indian-Thai cuisine at GAA) last Jan which, whilst good, was nowhere near as memorable as I’d have expected for a place of its standing.

I’ll be dining at Dewakan next month - Malaysia’s first entrant to the top 50 list. It’s breathtaking how its prices have almost doubled since.

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Fabulous list! :blush::+1:

Great! Some I’ll obviously try them out this summer! Especially those in Mongkok and Kowloon City.

On your HK list, I’ve tried:
23. Ser Wong Fun - we ate snake soup, was ok, not a big fan eating snake in a hot summer day.
24. Luk Yu Tea House - talked in various post, meals were ok, but didn’t get the wow like some food critics did, probably we were not their regular clients.
33. Zhejiang Heen 浙江軒 - recommended, see my visit here
36. Kam’s Roast Goose 甘牌燒鵝 - visited many times, including take away, loved it. More about it on HO here.

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We twice enjoyed Yan toh Heen when it was Lai Ching Heen and the hotel was Regent instead of Intercontinental. The cooking equaled the view, especially the steamed pink garoupa on the second visit – the flesh just barely separated from the bone. Luk yu’s reputation is deserved, though we would not put it on anyone’s bucket list.

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I don’t understand why they bother to include Indian Accent - it’s really an Asia ex-India list, which is fine.

Indian Accent is a really fine restaurant, too. My enduring memory of it on my only visit to the restaurant back on 2013 was their vodka-filled pani puri/golgappas. But then, Indian cities are full of other restaurants better and finer than Indian Accent. I think, at the end of the day, it’s all to do with “connections” in this list.

Over here in Malaysia, many Malaysians are also surprised at Dewakan making the list, but not DC by Darren Chin or Enfin by James Won.

It’s not the inclusion of Indian Accent I was commenting on, rather the inclusion of one token indian restaurant - better to not cover the country than pretend to.

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It’s very expat-centric. The same goes for China - not counting HK & Macau, only two restaurants from China were listed: Ultraviolet, an avant-garde fine dining restaurant by a French chef, and Fu He Hui, from the Fu chain that’s popular with expats.

Not on list, however, simply extraordinary is:

HONG KONG Michelin Starred Restaurant Tate Dining Room
Michelin Starred Lady Chef Vicky Lau.

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