Payset has analysed the data from Europe’s most luxurious restaurants to find out which truly takes the top spot for the costliest.
#15 – Ynyshir (Wales) – £3.95 per minute
This small restaurant set in the middle of nowhere in Wales is arguably the most mysterious on this list. Recently labelled the UK’s best restaurant by the Estrella Damm Awards, it is headed by Gareth Ward, one of the world’s most innovative chefs.
Located not far from Snowdonia, getting a table here can prove to be a herculean task. Trying to get your party a table may see you waiting until midnight and be faced with a bill of £1,422.80 when you finally get to your meal.
Despite the hefty bill, Ynyshir offers the best value for money on the list. Whether you choose Japanese beef, duck, or salt cod soup, each dish designed by Ward is certain to delight. The lengthy 30-course menu costs £3.95 per minute for a party of four.
#14 – Noma (Copenhagen) – £5.91 per minute
Noma has been one of the most talked about restaurants in the world over the past decade. Since 2010, the Danish eatery has won World’s Best Restaurant four times.
Head chef Mette Søberg uses local ingredients from the region to highlight three different styles during the year, from seafood to forest food. Examples from the quirky Gastro-Nordic menu include vegetarian celeriac shawarma; a dish using a duck’s brain, heart, and leg; or fried cod collar with cremé fraiche and caviar.
The exclusive dining opportunity can last up to four hours, costing a party of four £1,418.72 or roughly £5.91 per minute.
#13 – Le Louis XV Alain Ducasse (Monte Carlo) – £6.95 per minute
Set in the picturesque French Riviera and a stone’s throw from the Prix de Monaco, Le Louis has been acclaimed for its French Haute style and cuisine that is influenced by its nearby Mediterranean setting. One of the most praised dishes from the á la carte menu is the Mediterranean bass with asparagus, citrus, and olives from Nice.
A meal will typically cost a dinner party around £1,250.20 or £6.95 per minute. While pricey, the succulent flavours and scenic setting make it worth every second.
#12 – The Lecture Room and Library (London) – £7.12 per minute
Set in the affluent area of Mayfair in London, The Lecture Room and Library can cost a group of four £2,136.24. A vibrantly designed restaurant will see you sitting in a sizably comfortable armchair and served by a world-class team.
Despite being set in central London, the restaurant boasts a French Gastro Bistro cuisine. Chef Pierre Gagnaire’s style will have your table filled with an assortment of elegant dishes and sublime flavours accompanied by the best wines on offer.
The Lecture Room has plenty to boast about and will cost you £7.12 per minute.
#11 – The Alchemist (Copenhagen) – £7.21 per minute
“Over the top” is how many reviewers would describe The Alchemist. Patrons can enjoy 50 courses whilst admiring a unique environment that combines art, food, and technology. If you’re looking for a restaurant where atmosphere is just as important as the menu, then The Alchemist is the perfect option.
Dining at the incredibly expensive Danish restaurant helmed by Head Chef Rasmus Munk can come to £1,730.04 for a meal for four. The gastro style of eating can last up to four hours, amounting to a whopping £7.21 per minute.
#10 – La Vague d’Or (St Tropez) – £7.29 per minute
A spectacular restaurant based on the Cote d’Azur, La Vague d’Or boasts the highly-acclaimed talents of Arnaud Donckele who has created a gastro menu that will entice any palette. Donckele’s meals combine the tastes of the Riviera, the Mediterranean, and Provence, making for an exceptional gastronomic journey. 34 cooks work tirelessly to create each course which are then enjoyed by patrons in the dazzling Cote d’Azur sunshine.
It will cost about £1,750.20 for a dinner party to enjoy all the best flavours that Provence has to offer. Similar to Le Louis, the £7.29 per minute price tag is worth it just for the setting.
#9 – The Fat Duck (London) – £8.66 per minute
Run by the celebrity chef Heston Blumenthal, The Fat Duck is well-known for creating award-winning dishes and memorable dining experiences. Three Michelin stars and 25 years of bringing the best of modern British cuisine to its guests firmly place The Fat Duck in the top tier of restaurants in the UK and Europe.
Whether it’s Blumenthal’s obsession with using liquid nitrogen or his early adoption of sous vide cooking, his unique culinary creations leave a long waiting list of curious diners craving a seat at the restaurant.
To enjoy Blumenthal’s distinctive dishes of snail porridge or bacon and egg ice cream, a group can expect to pay £1,559.32 or £8.66 per minute.
#8 – La Marmite (St Moritz) – £10.06 per minute
Although now permanently closed, La Marmite was often found in the rankings for best mountain restaurants. Visitors needed to go up a vertigo-inducing cable lift to get inside the warm, inviting atmosphere of the Swiss eatery.
To eat in one of the highest restaurants in the world and enjoy champagne, caviar, lobster, as well as a spectacular view of the Swiss Alps, a dinner party would often pay £1,206.72, amounting to a breath-taking £10.06 per minute.
#7 – La Pergola (Rome) – £11.41 per minute
Another restaurant with spectacular views, diners can enjoy traditional yet creative Italian cuisine while overlooking the Eternal City. The historic décor of the restaurant offers fitting as you can easily spy many historical landmarks dating back to the Roman Empire.
Remarkably, La Pergola is the only restaurant to hold three Michelin stars in Rome. Eating here certainly meets the standards of an emperor as a dinner party may pay about £1,369 for a meal.
Head Chef Heinz Beck uses classic Italian tastes and simple ingredients to create a gourmet menu that hearkens back to the traditions of the Mediterranean and Italy. Coupled with an award-winning wine offering, you may find yourself thinking that the £11.41 per minute cost is fine value for money.
#6 – Hof van Cleve (Kruisem) – £11.68 per minute
Based in rural Belgium, Hof van Cleve originally began as a working farm before Head Chef Peter Goossens transformed the restaurant into an acclaimed gastro giant. Set in a homely farmhouse, the mouth-watering menus feature artistically designed dishes that highlight local Flanders ingredients.
To enjoy a seven-course meal that combines gastro and á la carte styles, you can expect your bill to total £1,401.80. It will often cost £11.68 per minute to experience this rustic Belgian farmhouse and taste a menu that is well-known around the culinary world.
#5 – Guy Savoy Monnaie de Paris (Paris) – £13.09 per minute
Guy Savoy Monnaie de Paris consistently finds itself in the higher echelons of every food guide and continues to dominate the Parisian restaurant scene.
This sophisticated French restaurant provides a spectacular menu but is most widely noted for its ‘Innovation and Inspirations’ 18-course tasting menu, which offers dishes such as a sumptuous artichoke soup with black truffle or mouth-watering roasted lobster. The cost? A tidy £13.09 for every minute of this lavish experience.
If you hope to experience a highly acclaimed á la carte menu in a dining room that allows you to look out onto the Louvre and Pont Neuf, prepare to have your dining party set back £1,963.36.
#4 – Ciel Bleu (Amsterdam) – £13.66 per minute
High upon the 23rd floor of the luxurious Okura hotel, you can behold the distinctive Amsterdam skyline while enjoying a superbly creative international cuisine that has won the Ciel Bleu two Michelin stars.
Dedicated to bringing their guests a truly ‘guestronomic’ experience, innovative chefs Onno Kokmeijer and Arjan Speelman designed three tasting menus which will see diners fork out £2,049.48 when they are finished with the worldly dining experience.
Whether it is a dish inspired by Japanese delicacies or a meal created using ingredients from Brittany, you can enjoy a variety of dishes in the Ciel Bleu’s refined and elegant dining room. Just note that you’ll spend £13.66 for every luxurious minute.
#3 – Le Meurice (Paris) – £14.27 per minute
Inspired by the royal apartments, Le Meurice follows on from Le Louis with Alain Ducasse’s influence and tastes.
Based in the iconic Le Meurice hotel, it is the perfect archetype of an extravagant French restaurant. Its modern approach to haute cuisine has led to it acquiring two Michelin stars.
The acclaimed restaurant offers a modern approach to haute cuisine, following Alain Ducasse’s tradition of preserving the authentic flavour of the natural produce and creating complex, pleasurable dishes.
Its luxurious interior and ornate dining room is the perfect setting for a lavish dinner. Your party may see a £1,712.24 bill at the end of the meal. Whether dining on foie gras pâté or roasted Lacunae lamb served with abalone and turnip, the extravagant menu is valued at £14.27 per minute.
#2 – Le Cinq (Paris) – £15.63 per minute
Of all Parisian restaurants, Le Cinq takes the top spot for most expensive. It holds three Michelin stars and, when it comes to French elegance and luxury, Le Cinq’s majestic dining room will leave any guest awestruck.
Its dinner bill outdoes Le Meurice, costing £1,875.76 for an average dinner party. Executive Chef Christian Le Squer’s approach to cuisine focusses on the French heritage of luxury. His extravagant gourmet menu showcases dishes such as line-fished sea bass, a caviar and buttermilk dish that is based on the chef’s childhood.
Some dishes are smaller than your pinky finger but come with immense flavour and artistic vision. For example, the small yet famous ‘Foie Gras Like A Pebble’ is both delicious and visually stunning. With this level of attention to detail, you won’t be surprised to find that it costs £15.63 per minute to eat in Paris’ most lavish restaurant.
#1 – Sublimotion (Ibiza) – £28.70 per minute
A mind-blowing experience, eating in Sublimotion is truly unique for a variety of reasons.
Based in the tourist hotspot of Ibiza, for over a decade the restaurant has challenged the traditional way of eating in a restaurant through the use of VR and technology. A musical menu, dancing service, and VR screens allow for an immersive and exciting affair that is like no other. A product of Head Chef and two Michelin star winner Paco Roncero, Sublimotion brings together spectacular art, avant-garde food, and futuristic technology to create an experience that costs £5,166.72 for a group of four.
Teams of designers, architects, writers, and illusionists have worked together to create a three-hour show that wows its audience for £28.70 per minute.
Methodology
We looked at the cost at each restaurant for a group of four, and used this number divided by the amount of time taken to eat its cuisine. This gave us a ‘per minute’ cost of eating at the restaurant, helping us find which is truly the most expensive.
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