Towse: views from the hill

Manresa Restaurant in Los Gatos has been selected for inclusion in Restaurant magazine’s annual “World’s 50 Best Restaurants” awards. The London-based industry bible polled more than 300 international restaurateurs, chefs, critics, and journalists to rank the best restaurants worldwide.

The complete list of award winners will be revealed on April 18, 2005, at an exclusive awards ceremony to be held in association with Penfolds Wines. David Kinch, chef and proprietor of Manresa and his partner, General Manager Michael Kean, will attend the event in London, where the world’s finest chefs and restaurateurs will converge. This is the first year that Manresa has been chosen for the international award in the restaurant’s three-year history.

“This is a great honor for the entire team at Manresa Restaurant,” said Chef David Kinch. “To be included in such elite company is very gratifying and, for Michael and myself, also increases our awareness that we are only as good as our staff is, and that we and the staff share a common goal. This recognition is all about them and for them.”

American, European, Asian, Australian, African and Middle Eastern restaurants comprise the list of 50 best restaurants. American restaurants selected for last year’s “World’s 50 Best Restaurants” included The French Laundry, Gramercy Tavern, and Daniel. In 2003 and 2004, The French Laundry was awarded top position on the list and named Penfolds’ Best Restaurant in the World. Top awards have also gone to European restaurants The Fat Duck, El Bulli, and L’Atelier de Joel Robuchon.

The award categories include ‘Best American Restaurant’, ‘Best Newcomer’, ‘Most Improved’, ‘Outstanding Value’ and ‘Chef’s Choice’. Paul Bocuse will receive The American Express Lifetime Achievement Award, an award presented for the first time this year to someone who has made an outstanding contribution to the world restaurant trade.

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About Manresa:
Manresa is the showcase for David Kinch’s contemporary American innovations in French and modern Catalan Spanish cuisine. Since opening in 2002, Manresa has garnered critical acclaim from Gourmet magazine, The London Observer, and The San Francisco Chronicle. Manresa is the culmination of David Kinch’s culinary journey including Quilted Giraffe in New York, Schweizer Stuben in Wertheim, Germany; L’Esperance in St. Pere-sous-Vezelay, France, Akelare in San Sebastián, Spain, Ernie’s in San Francisco, and his own restaurant, Sent Sovi in Saratoga.

Manresa is located at 320 Village Lane in Los Gatos, California, 50 miles south of San Francisco and only minutes away, but worlds apart, from Silicon Valley.

Manresa
David Kinch, Chef & Proprietor
320 Village Lane, Los Gatos, California 95030
408-354-4330
http://www.manresarestaurant.com