How To Enjoy The World’s 50 Best Restaurants Awards In Las Vegas

Launched in London more than 20 years ago, the World’s 50 Best Restaurants Awards has become one of the most important ratings in the rarefied world of top tier fine dining (though not without some criticism and controversy). But regardless what people think of the process behind selection, there’s no doubt that some of the big winners over the years have in fact been some of the world’s very best, places like Spain’s El Bulli, England’s The Fate Duck, Italy’s Osteria Francescana, Denmark’s Noma and in the U.S. notables have included Napa Valley’s French Laundry and New York City’s Eleven Madison Park.

Also, despite the name, the World’s Best List actually goes up to 100, and is split into the first 50 and second 50. There are also many sub-lists, including best by region (Asia, Latin America, North America, etc.) and other genres such as best bars and hotels.

The winners are announced once each year, and the actual awards ceremony has become a big thing in the food and travel industry, full of pomp and circumstance, and for 2024, the show is coming to Las Vegas. The actual awards are at Wynn Las Vegas on June 5, and there’s not much for the public, as the organizers have described the audience as “the world’s leading chefs, gastronomic media and renowned culinary VIPs.”

But for everyone else, there is an impressive slate of public events surrounding the awards, especially at two big hitters in the city’s culinary scene, Wynn Las Vegas and Resorts World Las Vegas. More ancillary foodie actvities are expected to be added at other properties and independent restaurants on and off The Strip as it gets closer.

Wynn Las Vegas

Wynn has the most Forbes Stars (hotels, spas, and restaurants) under one roof of any resort in the country, and you can read my detailed resort profile here at Forbes. Wynn is rolling out a new weeklong culinary festival called Revelry (ticket info and related info at this site) to go with its role as the awards’ host. Highlights include:

Monday, June 3: 50 Best Signature Sessions (Casa Playa). Things kick off with a five-course South of the Broder dinner by Wynn’s Casa Playa Chef Sarah Thompson and Elena Reygadas of Mexico City’s Rosetta (World’s Best Female Chef 2023). 50 Best Signature Sessions are collaborative dinners between chefs from The World’s 50 Best Restaurants list and Wynn’s top restaurants. (All Signature Series Reservations here).

50 Best Signature Sessions (Mizumi): Another special seated collaboration, Japan meets Thailand, with Bangkok Chef Thitid Tassanakajohn of Le Du (15th Best in World 2023) and Pichaya Soontornyanakij of Bangkok’s Potong (Best Female Chef Asia 2024) joining Chef Jeff Ramsey of Wynn’s Mizumi.

Tuesday, June 4: 50 Best Signature Sessions (Sinatra). Italian food fans rejoice as Sinatra Chef Theo Schoenegger welcomes Enrico Crippa of Piazza Doumo in Italy’s Albba (42 Best in World 2023).

Wednesday, June 5: East Meets Best Collaboration Dinner (Wing Lei). Wing Lei is the only Forbes 5-Star Chinese restaurant in the country and was and the first to earn a Michelin-star.

Chef Xian Ming Yu will welcome four other chefs from Wynn properties in Vegas and Macau

Thursday, June 6: Class in the Glass, a Wynn Master Class Collaboration (Casa Playa). Wynn is the only Las Vegas resort with a regular schedule of cooking and culinary classes, I’ve done one and they are great. This is a special edition of the Master Class series, showcasing how to reimagine classic cocktails, with both Wynn Master Mixologist Mariena Mercer Boarini and Kate Gerwin, aka Alchemist Kate, of Albuquerque’s Happy Accident, a craft cocktail bar that has won a slew of awards including Bar of the Year and Bartender of the Year.

50 Best Signature Session: Icons Dinner (Lakeside). An ultra-iconic group of superstar chefs previously recognized by The World’s 50 Best Restaurants Awards will come together, including Daniel Humm of Eleven Madison Park; Junghyun Park of Atomix; Thomas Keller of The French Laundry and Per Se; Kyle Connaughton of Single Thread; Dominique Crenn of Atelier Crenn; Pastry Chef Pía Salazar of Nuema; and Pastry Chef Dominique Ansel of Ansel Bakery. This is the flagship of the 50 Best Signature Sessions.

Friday, June 7: Wynn Celebrity Chef Golf Tournament, hosted by Thomas Keller and Friends (Wynn Golf Club). Wynn Las Vegas is the only resort on the Strip with its own golf course, an excellent Tom Fazio design that was the site of the televised NFL/PGA Tour two-man competition, The Match. I played the Wynn Golf Club on its opening day years ago and was the first person to ever birdie the signature 18^th, and always will be, but while you cannot beat that, there’s still a lot of fun to be had out there on the course. You’ll join Keller and other world-class chefs for a charity golf tournament benefitting Three Square Food Bank and the Women’s Hospitality Initiative.

Revelry All-Star Chefs Dinner (Lakeside). An experiential collaboration dinner featuring dishes by Brad Kilgore of Kilgore Culinary; Angie Mar of Le B; Philip Tessier of Press; Pastry Chef Margarita Manzke of République; and Pastry Chef Jen Yee of Wynn.

The Yakitori Evangelist with Yakitoriguy: Social media sensation Yakitoriguy will conduct a master class on his Japanese grilled chicken. Attending guests will learn how to deconstruct a chicken, make a glaze, and grill.

Chef Michael Symon x Chef Joshua Smith Collaboration Dinner (Delilah’s). Cleveland’s most famous chef (and restaurateur and Food Network personality) Michael Symon will join forces with Delilah Executive Chef Joshua Smith for a special dinner at Wynn’s modern-day supper club, featurin a Mediterranean-inspired menu (grilled octopus with chickpeas and tomatoes; grilled lamb chops with pea tzatziki and lemon potatoes; salt baked lavraki with ladolemono dressing).

Saturday, June 8: Revelry The Feast (Wynn Event Pavilion and Lawn). The biggie of thr week, and the most public-facing event is a walk around grand tasting, with lots of beer, wine and signature cocktails, similar to those at the major food festivals around the nation. The Feast “will take guests on an immersive, multi-sensory journey,” with four distinct culinary experiences, including the Four Sixes Ranch Country Cookout with sample cuts from TV hit Yellowstone writer Taylor Sheridan’s Four Sixes Ranch, cooked on wood burning rotisseries and an outdoor smoker; Road to Tulum, a celebration of coastal Mexican fare; The Casbah Marketplace, flavors of the Mediterranean and Middle East with James Beard Award-honored Chef Alon Shaya of Safta 1964 at Wynn Las Vegas, in collaboration with Chef Laura and Chef Sayat Ozyilmaz of Dalida; and Shibuya Crossing, sushi and elevated interpretations of Japanese street foods from Michelin-recognized Chef Jeff Ramsey of Mizumi at Wynn Las Vegas and special guests.

Sweet Imagination at Work. SW Steakhouse and Lakeside Executive Pastry Chef Michael Outlaw, and Salvatore Martone, longtime protégé to Chef Joël Robuchon, will create an unforgettable dessert experience and share their secrets to creating restaurant-caliber desserts at home.

Resorts World Las Vegas

As another official partner of The World’s 50 Best Restaurants, Resorts World Las Vegas will host the opening and closing events of the week. These are private for industry only but the rest of the slate is open to the public.

Ever since it opened, Resorts World has showcased one of the very best arrays of culinary options in the city, from top tier fine dining and the likes of the city’s finest Italian spot, Brezza, to its game changing Asian inspired “street food” food court. You can read my detailed resort review here at Forbes. Like their rival just across the Strip, they are throwing their own multi-day culinary festival, Indulge: A Week of Food, Culture, and Entertainment.

Thursday, June 6: A Night with ¡VIVA! x Brezza (Brezza). Chef Ray Garcia of ¡VIVA! and Chef Nicole Brisson of Brezza and Bar Zazu will collaborate on an Italian meets Mexico evening. The chefs will be tableside for the six-course dinner with expertly curated wine pairings.

Thursday, June 6 and Friday, June 7: Camphor Presents Steak Frites at RedTail (RedTail). Back-to-back two-night dinners bringing the popular steak frites dinner at Los Angeles’ Camphor and its Chefs Max Boonthanakit and Lijo George to Las Vegas. Good music, good food, and good company.

Friday, June 7: Chifa Takeover at FUHU (FUHU). Family-owned Los Angeles restaurant Chifa will bring its Chinese-Peruvian flair to FUHU’s patio alongside FUHU Chef John Liu.