How to Score a Table at the World’s Most Exclusive Restaurants

Following its relocation to a new cluster of buildings designed by Bjarke Ingels, Noma has set about reclaiming its place as one of the world’s most influential restaurants. It re-entered the World’s 50 Best Restaurants list this year as #2 in the world and is, once again, one of the hardest reservations on the planet to get. For this new iteration, René Redzepi took his original concept of hyper-local and seasonal Nordic cuisine to the next level, introducing three menus per year: vegetable season in the summer, game and forest season in the fall, and seafood season in the winter. Each tasting menu costs about $377 and includes around 20 courses.

Reservations are available exclusively via Noma’s website and tables are released 3-4 months in advance, so you’d better be quick. Since tables for two or four are the most sought-after, it can be easier to get a reservation for a larger group. When in doubt, register on the waiting list and pray for a call.

American Express Global Dining Collection partner Massimo Bottura’s restaurant—which held the title of #1 best restaurant in the world in 2016 and 2018—draws foodies from around the world to the small city of Modena in northern Italy’s Emilia Romagna region. Though Italy’s culinary scene tends to prize tradition over innovation, Bottura gained the world’s esteem for his modernist takes on traditional recipes.

According to Rome-based food & travel writer Maria Pasquale, who wrote the book I Heart Rome, it takes some serious dedication to get a reservation. “At 9 a.m. on the first of the month, you anxiously hop onto their site and hold your breath. At 9:03 a.m. (if you manage to get in) you take whatever is available for a date that is three months away. And you just make sure you’re free.” After getting a reservation and making the trip to Modena, Pasquale called the experience “one I’ll cherish for the rest of my life.”

Reservations at New York’s top restaurant, which closed for renovations shortly after being named the #1 best restaurant in the world, are notoriously difficult to get. Swiss chef Daniel Humm and restaurateur Will Guidara have won just about all the accolades in the book, not to mention published their own book. In addition to Humm’s artfully prepared dishes, the restaurant is known for its impeccable service (the maître d’ has been known to Google guests before they arrive).

Reservations open one month at a time on the first of every month at 9 a.m. EST. “Reservations on Fridays and Saturdays are the most popular by far, so we recommend that our guests are ready and logged in at 9 a.m. on the dot for the best chances,” Melinda Erickson, EMP’s Reservation Supervisor, told Departures. “We also recommend creating a Tock profile ahead of time to ease the checkout process.” She also revealed that there are six bar stools available on a first-come, first-served basis, and guests can order the bar tasting menu, light bites, or dishes a la carte.

Currently ranked #5 on the World’s 50 Best Restaurants list, Central has had an outsized influence on Lima’s dining scene. In fact, thanks in large part to the restaurant’s young chef Virgilio Martinez, Lima is considered one of the world’s top cities for food. Diners who make the trek there will embark on a culinary journey across Peru, as Martinez cooks with rare ingredients from the Amazon, the Peruvian highlands, and beyond. His is the only tasting menu in the world organized by elevation.

Central takes reservations two to four months in advance and doesn’t accept parties larger than six. Reservations for September through December 2019 will open on July 29. Can’t get a dinner reservation? Try making one for lunch instead.

Earlier this year, Mirazur claimed the title of the #1 best restaurant in the world on the World’s 50 Best Restaurants list—making it the first restaurant in France to climb to the top spot. It also earned a third Michelin star this year—another milestone for the Argentine chef Mauro Colagreco, who is the first non-French chef in France to earn three Michelin stars. The elegant three-story restaurant overlooks the glittering Mediterranean Sea in the village of Menton on the Côte d’Azur, surrounded by gardens that provide much of the fresh fruit, vegetables, and herbs used to prepare the dishes.

Guests choose how many courses they’d like, share any dietary restrictions, and put their fate in the hands of the chefs. Currently, tables are pretty much booked up through the end of this year, but you might be able to get a table if you come with a large party. Try booking online or call between the hours of 9 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. or 3 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.

Enrique Olvera, another American Express Global Dining Collection partner, is single-handedly responsible for elevating Mexican cuisine on the world stage. For serious foodies, his mole madre alone is worth a trip to Mexico City. So it’s no wonder tables book up three months in advance. If you can’t get a reservation for the tasting menu dinner, the ten-course taco tasting menu (only served at the bar) is an equally worthwhile experience.

Pujol is one of the few restaurants of this caliber that’s available to book on OpenTable, which currently shows the next table for two available in September. If you do manage to snag a seat, finish your meal with dessert in the garden and request a peek at the kitchen, where you can see the mole and watch the tacos being pressed.

Asia’s top chef Gaggan Anand is known for his wild imagination and playful dishes that encourage guests to get their hands dirty—literally. Though the Kolkata-born chef initially focused on modern Indian cuisine, lately he’s been finding inspiration in international cuisine, adding dishes like Mexican-inspired tacos and Japanese-Indian nigiri sushi to the menu of 25 small bites served in rapid succession. And now that he has announced he’ll be closing his eponymous Bangkok restaurant in 2020, reservations will be even harder to come by than before.

Request a reservation a month in advance via the restaurant’s website for one of two timeslots: 6 p.m. or 9 p.m. and wait for an email confirmation. If you can’t get the date and time you want in advance, you can try calling the day of to check and see if there have been any last-minute cancellations.

“We have people who come every year, every three years, three times every year, and some who just come once and never come back again,” says Andoni Luis Aduriz, the chef/owner of Mugaritz, one of the top restaurants in San Sebastian—a city famous for its Michelin stars. Though he worked at the pioneering restaurant El Bulli before opening his own restaurant, Aduriz has always adhered to the philosophy of less-is-more rather than playing with molecular gastronomy. His 220 Euro tasting menu is composed of about 20 courses inspired by the Basque country and his own personal memories.

The dining room has just 16 tables and they usually book up three months in advance. To book a table, fill in the online form—just keep in mind that the restaurant closes for three months every winter. If you can’t get the date you want, they recommend calling in case a last-minute cancellation opened up a table.

Want to dine on legendary American Express Global Dining Collection chef Alain Ducasse’s sumptuous French cuisine in one of the most gorgeously designed restaurants on the planet? You’ll need a reservation at his signature restaurant at the Plaza Athenée—one of the city’s most sought-after places to dine. Just walking into the dining room, where thousands of crystals hang from the ceiling, will make you feel like a million bucks.

Luckily for those dreaming of dining in this magical environment, it’s one of the more accessible restaurants on this list. You can often get a reservation two to three weeks in advance, especially if you’re willing to come for lunch on a Thursday or Friday. The restaurant also gives priority to hotel guests and diners celebrating a birthday, anniversary, or other special occasions.

The Spanish word “disfrutar” means “enjoy” and it perfectly encapsulates the restaurant’s ethos. Launched by three alums of El Bulli, Disfrutar dispenses with the white tablecloths and stuffiness that plagues some restaurants of its quality level. Instead, guests dine in a bright, airy space in Barcelona’s Eixample neighborhood with a semi-open kitchen that you walk past in order to get to the main dining room. A parade of playfully composed dishes emerges—the exact number depends on which tasting menu you choose. Some—like the spherified olives—are made using molecular gastronomy techniques.

Disfrutar is only open Monday through Friday, so Thursday and Friday nights are the most in-demand, with tables booking up six months ahead. You have a better chance of scoring a table with about a month’s notice on Mondays through Wednesdays. Online reservations are only available 180 days in advance and not all seats are available online, so it’s best to call or sign up for the waiting list.