Best Value Wine List

Archipel Restaurant

Middle East & Africa | Regional Winner

Poste de Flacq, Mauritius

One of the most highly acclaimed restaurants in Mauritius, L’Archipel, is set spectacularly alongside the infinity pool at Constance Le Prince Maurice. The elegant space exudes a sophistication and style that is perfectly matched by the menu.

Led by Executive Chef Michael Scioli, L’Archipel has earned itself a stellar reputation amongst food connoisseurs and regular guests, and hosted the sold-out 12* dinner at the 10th edition of the Festival Culinaire Bernard Loiseau.

Chef Michael and his team take the finest quality ingredients, with a focus on Asia, and transforms them using French techniques to create exquisite dishes infused with spices and warmth, combining flavours you might not expect.

The attention to detail here is exceptional. From the very first taste of mise bouche – where else could you try delights such as Parmesan Pannacotta – to the sweet grand finale, this is a place that delights.

Each day, Chef Michael suggests and alternates two menus, changing what’s on offer according to the very best ingredients available that day.

Indian infused flavours include Farm chicken “quenelle” with coconut emulsion and massala curry sauce, and Fish Hydrabadi, bhindi do payasa, tamarind chutney, sabzé butter masala and lemon rice.

Mauritian specialities such as seafood rougaille and Pork salmis with glazed small onions, garnishes and accompaniment are popular, as are more staple dishes served with the Archipel touch – Chicken supreme stuffed with dried mango and almonds, butter brioches and spinach brèdes.

The desserts are a real highlight here, and last week’s sweet treats included pineapple carpaccio with mint, mango sherbet and Soufflé with chocolate and ginger, almonds shortbread and its ice cream.

Find out more about Constance’s gastronomic experiences here

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Barcelona Wine Bar

North America | Regional Winner

Washington, USA

Barcelona Wine Bar is a warm and welcoming tapas bar inspired by the culture of Spain. The ever-changing menu is focused on clean flavors, seasonal ingredients, specialties from Spain and the Mediterranean, and rustic small plate presentations created by chefs with tremendous talent. Barcelona offers an award-winning selection of wines from Spain and South America—and boasts one of the largest Spanish wine programs in the U.S.

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Doppo

Europe | Regional Winner

London, United Kingdom

Founded as pop-up in October 2022, and operating permanently since March 2023, Doppo is a Tuscan-accented restaurant in the heart of Soho. Both kitchen & front-of-house teams are alumni of 2 & 3-star Michelin restaurants & leading private-member clubs. With just 40 covers, we pride ourselves on service & always having a dedicated sommelier on the floor to assist guests.

A Star Wine List finalist in our first year, Doppo’s list is printed monthly, with around 30 new wines typically appearing each month on a list of 600+ references.

Though focussed on Italy in general, and Tuscany in particular, we’re never parochial. We are interested in quality from around the world. We’re as delighted, for example, by our solo Greek listing as we are by demonstrating our strength-in-depth elsewhere in the world.

In curating our list, we’re always mindful that wine must reflect the place it is made. But we also celebrate the winemakers who work so hard to share it with us. We therefore spend a lot of time working closely with our wonderful producers to understand their distinctive vision; after all, we stand on their shoulders.

As well as offering fine wine at prices far lower than most London restaurants, another important preoccupation is listing wines in their best drinking windows; too many otherwise excellent lists contain nearly-exclusively current releases. We work hard to offer bottles of impeccable provenance that show well now.

We’re sometimes asked for the ”philosophy” behind our list; we are instinctively hesitant to offer such a potentially grandiose statement. Put simply, we’ve curated the wine list we would like to find when we dine out. We hope it gives our guests as much pleasure to select from as it has given us to put together because, as seriously as we take wine, it should, ultimately, be fun.

Supernormal

Australasia | Regional Winner

Melbourne, Australia

Supernormal is beautifully executed; a slick, understated fit out, an open kitchen and that indefinable X-factor that chef-restaurateur Andrew McConnell weaves into each new venture.

Design wise the feel is indisputably Japanese – something made very clear by the simple katakana signage and crimson neon cherries that can be seen from the Flinders Lane entrance. Housed in the new 171 Collins Street development, the large, glass-fronted space features playful touches such as Japanese snack vending machines, more vibrant neon and even a basement karaoke room.

A long, zinc-topped bar flanks one side of the room, parallel to the open kitchen where a platoon of chefs work in full view of the dining room. Even though the space is large, it creates a sense of cocooning warmth, helped along by the glow of the custom-made, cube-shaped lights lining the kitchen bar.

You’ll find plenty of Chinese influence on the menu – an echo of McConnell’s time spent living and working in Shanghai and Hong Kong. It features dishes such as dumplings, bao and Szechuan-peppered brisket. There are plenty of Korean and Japanese flavours shining through too; pulled Korean BBQ pork shoulder, skewered meats, kimchi, steaming bowls of ramen at lunch and some of the most delightful and creative desserts we’ve had in some time. There are also Golden Fields-era classics such as the lobster rolls and the peanut-butter parfait.

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