Chef René Mathieu; Credit: We're Smart World

For the second consecutive year, Chef René Mathieu's La Distillerie has been crowned "Best Vegetable Restaurant in the World" at the We're Smart® Awards.

We're Smart® World, the leading global culinary reference for plant-based cuisine, has announced the ranking of the best vegetable restaurants in the world. 

The Luxembourgish restaurant La Distillerie, run by Chef René Mathieu, brought home the We're Smart Award for Best Vegetable Restaurant in the World for the second year running.

Over the past year, We're Smart World has visited hundreds of restaurants around the world. The team assesses whether restaurant menus consist of at least two-thirds of fruit and vegetables, but also according to criteria based on their culinary creativity, their ecological footprint and their social impact. The best plant-based restaurants are awarded 1-5 radishes in the We're Smart Green Guide - the latest edition of which launched on Monday. The We're Smart Awards are considered the icing on the cake and each year recognise a number of top restaurants for their excellence.

This year's big winner was once again Chef René Mathieu's La Distillerie restaurant in Luxembourg, which ranked 1st worldwide and received the top score of 5 radishes in the We're Smart Green Guide.

“The recognition by We're Smart World touches me enormously. More than ten years ago, I embarked on 100% vegetable culinary creations, a hell of a challenge! This award motivates me to go even further. I also want to thank my team, because without them I would never have achieved this result", commented Chef René Mathieu. "My first source of inspiration is nature. It brings peace and sharpens all my senses. And like my kitchen, it's always on the move. The richness of plants is incredible: we discover new applications every day, and we will continue to learn from them all our life. My suppliers also inspire me with their beautiful products".

Chef René Mathieu continued: "Plant-based cuisine is not a substitute cuisine, but a full-fledged cuisine. It is delicious, colourful, comforting, light, extra gourmet, cheerful, fine, rustic ... It is what you want it to be. In the years to come, we want to continue to surprise our customers, and pass on to future generations the benefits of the fascinating world of healthy and sustainable vegetable cuisine".

Other Luxembourg restaurants included in this year's We're Smart Green Guide included: Léa Linster in Frisange (3 radishes); Ma langue sourit in Moutfort (3 radishes); Fani in Roeser (3 radishes); Apdikt in Steinfort (2 radishes); La Cristallerie in Luxembourg City (2 radishes); Mosconi in Luxembourg City (2 radishes); Oro e argento in Luxembourg City (2 radishes); Two6Two in Strassed (2 radishes); An Der Villa (1 radish).

The Top 10 We're Smart plant-based restaurants in the world are:

  • La Distillerie (Bourglinster, Luxembourg), Chef René Mathieu
  • De Nieuwe Winkel (Nijmegen, Netherlands), Chef Emile van der Staak
  • Vrijmoed (Ghent, Belgium), Chef Michaël Vrijmoed
  • Piazza Duomo (Alba, Italy), Chef Enrico Crippa
  • L'Oustau de Baumanière (Baux de Provence, France), Chef Glenn Viel 
  • L'Arpège (Paris, France), Chef Alain Passard
  • Eleven Madison Park (New York, USA), Chef Daniel Humm
  • Ricard Camarena (Valencia, Spain), Chef Ricard Camarena
  • Humus x Hortense (Brussels, Belgium), Chef Nicolas Decloedt
  • L'Air du Temps (Liernu, Belgium), Chef Sang-Hoon Degeimbre