This Beijing Restaurant Was Just Ranked the World’s Best

By Herlina Liu, October 24, 2019

After an exciting announcement of the upcoming launch of Beijing’s own Michelin Guide, good food news just keeps rolling in.

On October 22, TripAdvisor announced the winners of its annual Travelers’ Choice Awards for Restaurants, and Beijing’s very own TRB Hutong was crowned the number one fine-dining restaurant in the world, according to user reviews – the first time a restaurant in Asia has received this honor since the award’s inception eight years ago.

Recognizing a total of 584 restaurants, the awards were decided by an algorithm that analyzes millions of reviews, and “based on a full year of TripAdvisor reviews, these restaurants were consistently given high ratings and praise by diners across the globe,” according to TripAdvisor.

TRB Hutong is located in the hutongs of old Beijing, a minimalistic setting within the walls of a historic temple courtyard named Zizhusi that dates back to the Qing Dynasty, complete with contemporary sculptures in the central courtyard. Placing strong emphasis on high service standards, the restaurant delivers modern European dishes with innovative and harmonious adaptations using locally sourced, seasonal ingredients, alongside an over 1,000-strong wine list called Temptations.

TripAdvisor also ranked Restaurant Epicure in France as second best and Ristorante Villa Crespi in Italy third, as well as David’s Kitchen in Thailand seventh – the only other restaurant in the Top 10 list coming from Asia.

Glowing reviews for TRB Hutong on TripAdvisor include, “There are two reasons we keep coming back to Beijing three times a year as leisure travelers. [TRB Hutong] is one of them. It’s worth the 8,500-mile trip,” and “If this isn’t the first restaurant in Beijing to be awarded a Michelin star I will ‘eat my hat’.”

Last year, the restaurant was listed as number seven of the Top 10 Fine Dining Restaurants in the World, and made a gigantic leap to number one this year. Founder and owner of TRB Group, Ignace Lecleir, had this to say in the company’s press release:

“In many ways, last year’s award was a dangerous thing to receive. Our team at TRB had an audacious goal and believed that we were good enough to achieve it. However, in my time in the industry, I have seen many restaurants fade quickly, as the reality of maintaining a standard hits home. For that reason, this year’s award is so meaningful to me because we really have to keep our internal motivation to provide the best possible service strong and memorable. Gratifyingly, the team rallied and we proved ourselves worthy. I am so grateful to all of our guests for the overwhelming support we have received and for the new opportunities and challenges that await us. We are ready!”

[Top image via TRB]