Seafood from Norway is Official Seafood Partner for World’s 50 Best Restaurants

The very best of Norwegian shellfish will be on everyone’s lips when the gastronomical elite meets in Bilbao for the World’s 50 Best Restaurants awards in June.

As Official Seafood Partner, the Norwegian Seafood Council aims to lift more Seafood from Norway in to the most exclusive restaurant market worldwide.

Norwegian shellfish for the world’s culinary elite

The prestigious list of the world’s 50 best restaurants will be announced during a star-studded event at the Euskalduna Palace in Bilbao on the 19th June. The awards bring together the brightest shining stars on the culinary skies across the globe.

- At the awards ceremony the guests will be presented with the very best Seafood from Norway has to offer. These are the chefs, restaurateurs, food bloggers, journalists and authors that the rest of the world look to for inspiration. Being part of this prestigious event will contribute to lifting the status of our high-end produce to even greater heights, says Synne Guldbrandsen, project manager at the Norwegian Seafood Council.

Unique opportunity

As part of the event the 500 specially invited guests will be served several dishes with exclusive Norwegian shellfish.

- This event is a unique opportunity to build a valuable network in the topmost level of restaurants and will be a great meeting point for those businesses already working with, or have the capabilities to, deliver shellfish to this discerning segment of the industry, says Guldbrandsen.

As part of the partnership, the Norwegian Seafood Council would like to hear from shellfish suppliers meeting the following criteria:

• Experience with this discerning segment of the restaurant industry
• Holding necessary certifications/classifications
• Documented distribution systems for this segment already in place
• Would like to make full use of this opportunity

Long term positioning strategy of Norwegian shellfish and Seafood from Norway

The Norwegian Seafood Council would like to bring the most exclusive niche products of Norwegian shellfish to the attentions of the best chefs in the world. Following the awards in Bilbao, the Seafood Council will continue working with the restaurants and chefs on the list to highlight the quality and the stories behind the Norwegian produce. The goal is for more of these restaurants to put Norwegian shellfish on their menus, also beyond the produce used in the awards dinner.

- The potential for growing preference for and knowledge of Norwegian shellfish among the world’s best chefs is huge. With Norwegian shellfish acting as an exclusive spearhead into this culinary world, other Norwegian seafood products will also benefit, says Guldbrandsen.

The World’s 50 Best Restaurants Award

The list of the world’s 50 best restaurants is an annual ranking that, together with the Michelin-guide, are viewed as the most important restaurant awards in the world. This year’s list will be the 17th of its kind.

The list is the result of the votes from 27 panels comprising over 1 000 restaurant critics, chefs, restauranteurs and other foodies across the world. Each panel has 36 members dividing seven votes, and at least three of the votes must be given to restaurants outside of their own region.

This year’s list will be presented on the 19th June in Bilbao, Spain.