The highly anticipated World's 50 Best Restaurants arrives in Australia on Saturday, 1 April. Over 90 chefs and restaurant representatives, as well as over 70 international media and the 26 Academy Chairs, will visit Australia for the week-long official event program, hosted by Tourism Australia and state partner, Visit Victoria.

Tourism Australia has worked closely with event organisers William Reed Business Media on the official event program which runs from 1-8 April. These events will showcase Australia's outstanding food and wine culture to an international audience of chefs, restaurateurs, winemakers, sommeliers, media and food lovers.

Federal Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment, the Hon Steven Ciobo MP, said: “Australia is proud to be hosting the world's best chefs for this significant event. Tourism Australia's Restaurant Australia campaign continues to bring Australia's unique culinary experiences to centre stage in our destination marketing. The record visitor numbers we are seeing lately is proof of its success. 

“Food and wine spend has increased by 29 per cent since the campaign launched and 60 per cent of visitors rank Australia as one of the top destinations in the world for a gourmet holiday,” he said.

Tourism Australia Managing Director John O'Sullivan said: “Hosting these prestigious awards in Melbourne, together with the Australia-wide program of events that we've put together around them, is the next exciting chapter in our ongoing Restaurant Australia story.

“We know from our research that Australia's association with great food and wine rises significantly amongst international travellers after they've visited and sampled the delights that our country has to offer.

“The World's 50 Best Restaurants provides the perfect platform for Australia's talented chefs, restaurateurs, producers, and winemakers to demonstrate their culinary credentials and ensure this impressive gathering of influential food and wine figures leave our country as lifelong advocates,” he said.

William Drew, Group Editor of The World's 50 Best Restaurants said: “It is incredibly exciting to be hosting The World's 50 Best Restaurants in Australia this year, undoubtedly one of the world's great food destinations. We have worked closely with Tourism Australia to highlight the country's unique produce, brilliant wines and dynamic dining scene across key events as part of The World's 50 Best Restaurants 2017.”

Key events in The World's 50 Best Restaurants program include: 

• The Chefs' Feast at West Beach Bathers Pavilion (4 April);
• The World's 50 Best Restaurants awards ceremony at Melbourne's Royal Exhibition Building (5 April);
• The Great Aussie Brunch at QT Melbourne (6 April)
• The Academy Escape in South Australia (6-8 April)

The official event program kicks off with an intimate beachside dinner giving the 50 best chefs a taste of Australia's unique native ingredients as prepared by some of the country's greatest chefs including Kylie Kwong (Billy Kwong), Lennox Hastie (Firedoor), Jock Zonfrillo (Restaurant Orana), Martin Benn (Sepia), Peter Gilmore (Quay and Bennelong), Shannon Bennett (Vue de monde) and Analiese Gregory (Bar Brose).

The Awards Ceremony is the pinnacle of the event program where over 850 guests will walk the red carpet and dine from an Australian-themed menu served up by Neil Perry, ahead of the official ceremony, where The World's 50 Best Restaurants 2017 will be announced. In addition to the visiting chefs and Academy Chairs, the ceremony will also be attended by more than 200 media outlets from over 40 countries.

In a world-first, the public will be able to watch the awards ceremony unfold on the big screen at a picnic-themed Federation Square in Melbourne. The countdown event will include food talks, music, comedy and food trucks.

The morning after the awards Tourism Australia will farewell the chefs and visiting media with the second annual Great Aussie Brunch, themed All- Star Yum Cha as a celebration of Australia's multicultural culinary influences and leading Asian-Australian chefs.

The World's 50 Best Restaurants Academy Chairs, who head the voting panels for the awards, will then visit South Australia for a two day program sampling the best of the region's vineyards, dining in some of the state's best restaurants and meeting local producers and chefs with the support of Tourism Australia and the South Australian Tourism Commission.

The awards program will also extend nationally as Tourism Australia has partnered with the State and Territory Tourism Organisations and tourism industry to offer 100 of the visiting chefs and media the opportunity to take part in a country-wide tour, taking in some of Australia's best food and wine experiences.

To further celebrate The World's 50 Best Restaurants, Visit Victoria has engaged White Night Creative Director, David Atkins, to create a week-long program of light projections on Melbourne's famous Hamer Hall.

The 25th edition of the world-famous Melbourne Food and Wine Festival has also aligned its dates with The World's 50 Best Restaurants, with its program running from 31 March to 9 April. This will include a MasterClass series celebrating The World's 50 Best Restaurants, featuring top chefs from around the globe, on 1 and 2 April.

“The world's culinary elite will descend on Melbourne this April and with them an invaluable opportunity to share our stories through our talented chefs, our world-class restaurants, and our unique regional settings.

“With hundreds of foodie events around town and our free The World's 50 Best Restaurants awards live-streaming event at Federation Square - everyone is invited to join in the celebrations,” said Visit Victoria's Chief Executive Officer, Peter Bingeman.

About The World's 50 Best Restaurants

Founded in 2002 and owned by William Reed Business Media, The World's 50 Best Restaurants is a celebration of global gastronomy, bringing together a unique community of visionaries across the culinary landscape. The annual list and awards are based on the votes of an influential group of over 1,000 international leaders in the restaurant community. As a globally recognised gastronomic reference point, The World's 50 Best Restaurants showcases leading trends and highlights great restaurants from all corners of the Earth.

The 2017 World's 50 Best Restaurants awards will be held at the Royal Exhibition Building on Wednesday 5 April, including a menu by Neil Perry and an installation designed by award-winning designer and florist Joost Bakker.

About The Chefs' Feast
The Chefs' Feast, the first official event of The World's 50 Best Restaurants 2017, will be held at West Beach Bathers Pavilion on Tuesday 4 April. A who's who of the Australian culinary scene will showcase the best Australian produce for the annual welcome dinner for the visiting chefs and owners of The World's 50 Best Restaurants. The beachside event, will be a showcase of some of Australia's best produce through signature dishes that demonstrate the diversity of Australia's native ingredients and the sophistication of its cuisine. Kylie Kwong (Billy Kwong), Jock Zonfrillo (Restaurant Orana) and Lennox Hastie (Firedoor), will welcome guests beachside with Moreton Bay bugs in XO, saltbush cakes and magpie goose cooked over fire. Martin Benn (Sepia), Peter Gilmore (Quay and Bennelong), and Shannon Bennett (Vue de monde), will then look after the sit-down element of the night. Rising Australian culinary star Analiese Gregory (Bar Brose) will look after dessert, putting a native Australian ingredient twist on Australian classics.

About The Great Aussie Brunch

Tourism Australia will host the second annual Great Aussie Brunch on Thursday 6 April, the morning following The World's 50 Best Restaurants, on the QT Melbourne Rooftop. The event will be a send off for the visiting chefs, Academy Chairs and international media and will show off the best of Australia's relaxed yet sophisticated approach to food and wine. The Yum Cha brunch will see some of Australia's most interesting chefs put an Australian twist on many yum cha classics and showcase some of Melbourne's best Asian restaurants.  Chefs looking after the brunch menu include: David Thompson (Long Chim), Neil Perry (Spice Temple), Victor Liong (Lee Ho Fook), ArChan Chan and Andrew McConnell (Ricky and Pinky), Thi Le (Anchovy), and Anthony Lui (Flower Drum).

About The Academy Escape

The Academy Escape (6-8 April) is a two-day itinerary for the 26 Academy Chairs taking place in South Australia.  They will experience the region's vineyards in the Adelaide Hills and Barossa Valley, meet with local producers and South Australian chefs, and dine in some of the state's best restaurants as part of their two-day annual general meeting. The official Academy Dinner, a key event in the two-day program, will be held on Friday 7 April at Hentley Farm, one of South Australia's renowned restaurants.  Other highlights of the program include: Wild Adelaide Welcome Feast in the Adelaide Hills with Duncan Welgemoed from Africola cooking wild South Australian produce over fire; a bush breakfast with kangaroos; and a helicopter tour over the Barossa, landing at the famous Steingarten Vineyard for a St Hugo Riesling tasting experience.