SINGAPORE, March 10 — For a third consecutive year, Restaurant Andre has been named The S. Pellegrino Best Restaurant in Singapore. Rising one place from its 2014 ranking, the restaurant was the highest placed Singapore restaurant, securing the No 5 spot.

“I feel great for Restaurant Andre, and I feel great for Singapore,” the surprised chef and co-owner Andre Chiang said, adding that it has always been the restaurants philosophy since it opened to take progress “one step at a time”.

Also celebrating its third year on the list was JAAN, whose team, led by Chef Julien Royer, saw its efforts reap rewards after climbing six spots to place just outside the top ten. Royer said he honestly did not expect to earn the No 11 spot so quickly, admitting that he had only dared dream of a maximum improvement of five notches up the list, realistically “two or three” spots up.

In all, a total of 10 Singapore restaurants were honoured at the awards, including returning favourites Waku Ghin (No 9, down two) and Les Amis, which climbed up one place to take the 13th spot. Those that didn’t do too well included Iggy’s, which dropped six places to No 12, and Tippling Club, which dropped 13 places to No 23. On a more positive note, Burnt Ends debuts at No 30, while and Osteria Mozza returns to the list at No 45.

Now in its third year, Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants, sponsored by S. Pellegrino and Acqua Panna, revealed the 2015 list of winners at an awards ceremony at Capella Hotel, Singapore last night. The country with the most restaurants on the list was China with 16, followed by Singapore’s 10 and Japan with eight restaurants.

As some have posited, given certain changes in the voting structure, this year’s list saw a number of interesting movements, both up and down the list honouring the continents hottest dining destinations. This included David Thompson’s Nahm in Bangkok, which had to vacate the top spot, dropping a surprising six spots to land at No 7. Swooping in to perch at the top was another Bangkok restaurant (and last year’s No 3) — Gaggan by Chef Gaggan Anand, whose reinvigorated Indian cuisine, retold using modern cooking techniques seemed to have done enough to pip Tokyo’s Narisawa (No 2) for the title of Asia’s Best Restaurant. (Thailand was also represented further down the list by Eat Me at No 25 (up 12 places), Bo Lan at No 37 (down nine spots) and Issaya Siamese Club, which also dropped eight places to No. 39.)

This may also be a more accurate reflection of Asia’s famously vibrant dining scene and the quality it proffers across an increasingly cosmopolitan landscape.

“For the first time since its inception in 2013, the results for Asia’s 50 Best will be based on votes cast by a group of Asia-based panellists instead of the same global group that creates the World’s 50 Best list,” said Singapore’s Evelyn Chen, who is the new Academy Chair for South East Asia (South) for the World’s 50 Best Restaurants lists.

She said that unlike the previous tally of votes collected from the 900-plus members of The Diners Club World’s 50 Best Restaurants Academy, the 300 voters spread across the continent are made up of a unique mix of highly regarded foodies that include chefs, food writers and gastronomes, who live in Asia, know the dining scene here like the back of their hands and who travel extensively within the region. “On that premise, people who live in Asia should know the Asian dining scene better than non-Asians and the new voting system will be a more accurate barometer of the best dining experiences in Asia,” she added.

William Drew, Group Editor, 50 Best Restaurants, affirmed that a regional vote will better showcase the region’s diverse restaurant scene, creating “a more comprehensive overview”.

Visit here for the complete list of winners. — Today