101 Best Restaurants In Europe 2012

Lauren Mack|Dec. 19, 2012 12:01 pm EST

First came The Daily Meal's 101 Best Restaurants in America, then 101 Best Hotel Restaurants Around the World. Now, The Daily Meal has set its sights on Europe. Perennially on the quest to find the best places to eat and dine in cities large and small, The Daily Meal presents its first list of the most exemplary epicurean endeavors on the European continent.

See 101 Best Restaurants in Europe Slideshow

It would have been easy to name 101 really good restaurants in France alone, or Italy, or Spain, or the U.K. — but we wanted to represent as wide a geographical reach as possible, not just recognizing the best in more familiar places, but discovering lesser-known gems in other corners of the continent. Thus our inaugural list includes restaurants in 26 countries: Austria, Belgium, Croatia, Denmark, England, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Monaco, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Russia, Scotland, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland

Restaurants in 70 cities made the list. While capital cities like London, Moscow, Paris, and Tallinn are well represented, more than half of the restaurants (see the full list) are in smaller cities and far-flung locales like Alexander on Muhu Island off Estonia's northeast coast, Die Schwarzwaldstube in Baiersbronn, Germany, and Fäviken Magasinet in Järpen, Sweden. France claims the most spots on the list with 15 restaurants, of which 11 are in Paris.

Methodology
The Daily Meal's list of the 101 Best Restaurants in Europe was carefully curated through a seven-month-long nomination process; we consulted the Michelin Guide and other trusted sources and gathered hundreds of recommendations from The Daily Meal's editors, who have traveled and dined extensively around the world.

Once we compiled a preliminary list of more than 1,450 restaurants, we reached out to a panel of more than 200 knowledgeable judges, comprised of restaurant critics, food and lifestyle writers, and bloggers with wide restaurant-going experience. We curated separate panels by region so only experts on the U.K. voted for U.K. restaurants, Italy experts voted for Italy, and so on.

The Panelists
From there, an esteemed panel of 33 experts, along with The Daily Meal's editorial staff, evaluated the selection and voted for their favorites region-by-region (meet The Daily Meal's panelists).

Each Wednesday, beginning Oct. 3, 2012, the top 10 to 25 restaurants in a region in Europe were highlighted in the lead-up to the list's debut. A total of 215 restaurants made the final cut and were featured on The Daily Meal this past fall. In case you have missed any:

Voting Criteria
To narrow this list down to 101, panelists voted by region in two categories: cuisine and style/décor/service. From innovative menu options to plating and presentation to freshness, quality, and taste, panelists evaluated each restaurant's cuisine and only voted for the restaurants which they believe are extraordinary. For the second category, panelists evaluated the dining experience, from the restaurant's interior and dining room ambiance to the service, voting for the restaurants which they believe offer an unrivaled experience. A second round of voting took place to whittle the list down from 215 to 101, allowing each of the finalists to be compared not only among their regional peers but with finalists across the entire continent. Each restaurant had the chance to be voted on twice during the survey. Finally, the percentage scores from each category were averaged to arrive at the final ranking.

The 101 Best Restaurants in Europe List
With dozens of restaurants to choose from, it was a culinary challenge to whittle the list down to a select 101. Restaurants offering a variety of cuisines, from classic French to fusion, were considered. We did not discriminate according to location; no town, island, or enclave was off the table. Price was not considered, though many of these impressive restaurants have equally impressive tabs. Although we took guidance from the Michelin Guide and other reputable restaurant guides in making up our initial list of nominees, we weren't slaves to their rankings, and many excellent Michelin-starred restaurants have been omitted, while a number of places not singled out for recognition by the Michelin Guide have been included.

You will note that our panelists in many cases gave high rankings to traditional restaurants like Mavrikos in Lindos, Rhodes over the new and trendy, perhaps because they felt that these places had proven themselves over the long haul and were more consistent.

While many of the restaurants on our list are gastronomic palaces, there are also a number of more casual places that reflect the local character, ingredients, and culinary traditions.

Ten restaurants from 101 Best Hotel Restaurants Around the World are also honored here, including five in Paris, the city that had the most restaurants on our list in August: Alain Ducasse au Plaza Athénée at Plaza Athénée Hotel, Epicure at Le Bristol, Le Cinq at the Four Seasons Hotel George V, Le Comptoir at Hôtel Relais Saint-Germain, and Restaurant Le Meurice at Le Meurice Hotel. Rounding out the list of hotel restaurant honorees who also made the cut here are Anne-Sophie Pic at Beau-Rivage Palace in Lausanne; El Motel Restaurant at Hotel Empordà in Figueres, Spain; Le Louis XV at Hôtel de Paris in Monte Carlo; Mathias Dahlgren Matsalen at Grand Hôtel in Stockholm; and Restaurant Patrick Guilbaud at Merrion Hotel in Dublin.

Any list like this one is bound to stir disagreements among discerning diners; even our own staff was divided on which restaurants made the final cut. After checking out The Daily Meal's 101 Best Restaurants in Europe, share your compliments and critiques in the comments section below — or on Twitter using the hashtag #BestDiningEurope — and let us know what restaurants you think should have been included, or should have been left out.

Which restaurant made it to the top of the list? The answer may just surprise you.

Editorial director Colman Andrews (@Colmanandrews), executive editor Arthur Bovino (@Arthur_Bovino), and junior writers Sean Flynn (@BuffaloFlynn) and Clare Sheehan (@clare_sheehan) contributed to 101 Best Restaurants in Europe. Lauren Mack is the Travel editor at The Daily Meal. Follow her on Twitter @lmack.

101 Best Restaurants in Europe Panelists

Libby Andrews, of Ravenous
Rachel Bajada, of French for Foodies
Rosemary Bailey, award-winning travel writer and journalist
Kathy Bechtel, of the blog ChefBikeSki and founder of ItaliaOutdoors Food and Wine
Peter Black, food expert
Guan Chua, of the blog The Boy Who Ate the World
Gerry Dawes, Spain dining expert who has written several books including Gerry Dawes's Spain: An Insider's Guide to Spanish Food, Wine, Culture and Travel
Anne Dolamore, publisher and cookery editor of Grub Street (U.K.)
David Downie, food, wine, and travel writer who has written several books including Food Wine Burgundy
Jonell Galloway-White, editor of The Rambling Epicure who has co-authored Around the World with 80 Breads
Ross Golden Bannon, restaurant critic, The Sunday Business Post and editor of Food & Wine Magazine
Helen Graves, of the blog Food Stories
Annie Jacquet-Bentley, chef and restaurant consultant
Agusti Jausas, food writer
Dino Joannides, food blogger, author, and consultant
Evelyn J. Kim, of the blog Edo Ergo Sum
Diane Kochilas, chef, TV personality, author of 18 books on Greek cuisine, and food columnist and restaurant critic for Athens' major daily newspaper, Ta Nea
Trine Lai, of Very Good Food
Karen Le Billon, author on food and France
David Leite, of Leite's Culinaria
Jack Maraffi, editor-in-chief of The Affluent Traveler
Julie Mautner, of The Provence Post
Elizabeth Minchilli, Rome-based food writer
Roger Morris, wine, food, and travel writer

Chiara Pannozzo, of Wine & Olives
Joe Ray, food and travel writer and photographer
Xavier Roig, food expert
Anne Skoogh of Anne's Food
Emily Stone of Chocolate in Context
Laurent Vanparys of Gastros on Tour
Luisa Weiss, of the blog The Wednesday Chef and author of My Berlin Kitchen: A Love Story
Marjorie Williams, author of Markets of Paris (second edition)
Meg Zimbeck of Paris by Mouth

101 Best Restaurants in Europe

101. Figlmüller (Vienna)
100. Mavrikos (Lindos, Rhodes)
99. Plavi Podrum (Volosko, Croatia)
98. Onyx (Budapest, Hungary)
97. Fish Market (Reykjavik, Iceland)
96. miX (St. Petersburg, Russia)
95. Ristorante Del Cambio (Turin, Italy)
94. Selene (Pyrgos, Santorini, Greece)
93. Alle Testiere (Venice, Italy)
92. Quo Vadis (London)
91. Spondi (Athens)
90. Le Mandrać (Volosko, Croatia)
89. Syr (Moscow)
88. Aniar Restaurant (Galway, Ireland)
87. Csalogány 26 (Budapest, Hungary)
86. Ikarus (Salzburg, Austria)
85. Vila Joya (Albufeira, Portugal)
84. Ribe (Tallinn, Estonia)
83. The Restaurant at Ballymaloe House (Shanagarry, Ireland)
82. Fishy Fishy (Kinsale, Ireland)
81. Steirereck (Vienna)
80. Liviano Restaurant (Bratislava, Slovakia)
79. Cheval Blanc (Basel, Switzerland)
78. The River Cafe (London)
77. Madonnina del Pescatore (Senigallia, Italy)
76. Via Veneto (Barcelona, Spain)
75. Ca l'Isidre (Barcelona, Spain)
74. Chaika (Moscow)
73. Restaurant Clairefontaine (Luxembourg City)
72. Hakkasan Mayfair (London)
71. Restaurant AOC Aarø & Co. (Copenhagen, Denmark)
70. Don Alfonso 1890 (Sant'Agata Sui Due Golfi, Italy)
69. Trussardi Alla Scala (Milan, Italy)
68. Chez Dominique (Helsinki)
67. Mathias Dahlgren Matsalen at Grand Hôtel (Stockholm)
66. La Ciau del Tornavento (Treiso, Italy)
65. Relæ (Copenhagen, Denmark)
64. Il Luogo di Aimo e Nadia (Milan)
63. Fäviken Magasinet (Järpen, Sweden)
62. Enoteca Pinchiorri (Florence, Italy)
61. The Three Chimneys (Isle of Skye, Scotland)
60. La Vie (Osnabrück, Germany)
59. Maaemo (Oslo, Norway)
58. Alexander (Muhu Island, Estonia)
57. Søllerød Kro (Hoite, Denmark)
56. Da Fiore (Venice, Italy)
55. Ca l'Enric (La Vall de Bianya, Spain)
54. Sonnora (Dries, Germany)
53. Paolo e Barbara (Sanremo, Italy)
52. Le Comptoir at Hôtel Relais Saint Germain (Paris)
51. Vendôme (Bergisch Gladbach, Germany)
50. Les Ambassadeurs (Paris)
49. Mugaritz (San Sebastián, Spain)
48. Patrick Guilbaud (Dublin)
47. Anna Sacher (Vienna)
46. Geranium (Copenhagen, Denmark)
45. Le Carré des Feuillants (Paris)
44. Die Schwarzwaldstube (Baiersbronn, Germany)
43. Atelier de Jean-Luc Rabanel (Arles, France)
42. The Witchery (Edinburgh, Scotland)
41. Sant Pau (Sant Pol de Mar, Spain)
40. Quique Dacosta (Dénia, Spain)
39. Restaurant Gordon Ramsay (London)
38. Le Cinq at the Four Seasons Hotel George V (Paris)
37. The Waterside Inn (Bray, Berkshire, England)
36. Anne-Sophie Pic at Beau-Rivage Palace (Lausanne, Switzerland)
35. De Karmeliet (Bruges, Belgium)
34. Oud Sluis (Sluis, Netherlands)
33. Tickets/41º (Barcelona, Spain)
32. Moments (Barcelona, Spain)
31. Asador Etxebarri (Axtondo, Spain)
30. El Motel Restaurant (Figueres, Spain)
29. Le Calandre (Sarmeola di Rubano, Italy)
28. Bruneau (Brussels)
27. Les Prés d'Eugénie (Eugenie-les-Bains, France)
26. Pierre Gagnaire (Paris)
25. Chapter One (Dublin)
24. St. John Bar & Restaurant (London)
23. Maison Troisgros (Roanne. France)
22. Benoît Violier (Crissier, Switzerland)
21. Bras (Laguiole, France)
20. The Fat Duck (Bray, Berkshire, England)
19. Le Louis XV at Hôtel de Paris (Monte Carlo)
18. Alain Ducasse au Plaza Athénée at Plaza Athénée Hotel (Paris)
17. Restaurant Le Meurice at Le Meurice Hotel (Paris)
16. Epicure at Le Bristol (Paris)
15. Taillevent (Paris)
14. Dinner by Heston Blumenthal (London)
13. Dal Pescatore (Canneto sull'Oglio, Italy)
12. El Celler de Can Roca (Girona, Spain)
11. El Racó de Can Fabes (Sant Celoni, Spain)

10. JB Restaurant (Ljubljana, Slovenia)
9. L'Arpège (Paris)
8. Hof van Cleve (Kruishoutem, Belgium)
7. Varvary (Moscow)
6. Aqua (Wolfsburg, Germany)
5. Guy Savoy (Paris)
4. Alain Ducasse at The Dorchester (London)
3. Noma (Copenhagen, Denmark)
2. Arzak (San Sebastián, Spain)
1. Osteria Francescana (Modena, Italy)