The winning formula | Asia's 50 Best Restaurants
Asia's 50 Best Restaurants list isn't just an accolade, it's a spotlight on innovation, resilience, and flavours that endure. So what spins the magic that transforms each restaurant into a global culinary ambassador? Spice brings you shared wisdom from some iconic and awarded chefs this year.
From Bangkok’s electric streets to the misty hills of Himachal, the recent Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants 2026 proves that Indian Chefs are rewriting the rules, bolder, sharper, and rooted in their own soil. At No.3, ‘Gaggan’ in Bangkok is still the rebel we love, but with a newfound elegance. Gaggan Anand’s latest incarnation, reborn in 2019, is less punk rock rebellion, more rock opera masterpiece, cacophony tempered by craft. Thailand’s finest? No doubt about it. In Mumbai, ‘Masque’ (No.15) turned a forgotten shed into India’s most celebrated kitchen. Co-founders Aditya and Aditi Dugar saw magic where others saw dust. A decade later, their vision is reality, with a five-time Best Restaurant in India win, now with Asia’s ‘Art of Hospitality’ title to top up that boast. Service here is pure intuitive grace, glasses topped up before you blink, napkins refolded silently, seasonal tastes traipsing from Goa to Kashmir. Chef Varun Totlani, who started as a commis in 2016, now leads the kitchen with a tasting menu that’s part pilgrimage, part art. Just as remarkable, ‘Masque 2.0’ promises a reboot, evolving its walls but never its soul.