The Best Chef Awards 2025 To Take Place In Milan, Italy

The Best Chef Awards is proud to announce that its 9th edition will take place in Milan, Italy, on October 1st and 2nd 2025. After a landmark year in Dubai, the awards return to Europe, landing in one of the most emblematic culinary cities in the world. Known globally as a capital of style and design, Milan offers a rare blend of gastronomic excellence, artistic heritage, and forward-thinking creativity, making it the perfect stage for a celebration of the chefs shaping the future of dining.

Milan will host a series of high-profile events over two days, starting with an immersive Day 1 Area Talks program, followed by the flagship Awards Gala, The Best Chef Awards 2025 will honour the most inspiring chefs, culinary thinkers, and pioneers from around the globe.

Among the first confirmed names are Massimo Bottura (Italy), Yoshihiro Narisawa (Japan), and Joan Roca (Spain), with many more world-class chefs to be announced soon.

A PROGRAM ROOTED IN THE BEST CHEF ETHOS AND SOUL

Located less than an hour’s drive from Milan, the renowned wine region of Franciacorta in the gentle hills of Lombardy is home to Bellavista, the venue for this year's Area Talks.

This year’s edition will open with a powerful evening of discussion, reflection, and exchange, exploring how food connects people, places, and ideas. The night will conclude with an informal standing dinner celebrating regional.

This year will also see a very special recognition from The Best Chef Awards, selected independently by The Best Chef board. In keeping with our ethos of being free from external influence, this award will honour the remarkable resilience and dedication of chefs who provide food relief, celebrating their commitment to feeding communities in the most challenging circumstances.

On 2 October, the spotlight turns to the official Awards Gala, held at Milan’s iconic Studio 90, part of the renowned East End Studios complex. Housed in a former early-1900s aeroplane factory in the city’s Via Mecenate district, Studio 90 combines raw industrial character with state-of-the-art production, creating a dramatic and versatile setting for the celebration. The evening will include a welcome reception, immersive showcases from local producers, and the unveiling of this year’s award recipients, all culminating in an after-party as vibrant and unforgettable as The Best Chef is known for.

WHY MILAN

Milan is a city where artistry is plated, poured, and presented with intention. Its culinary scene blends heritage and innovation, from saffron risotto and ossobuco to avant-garde tasting menus. Located in Lombardy, one of Italy’s richest agricultural regions, Milan gives chefs access to exceptional local produce, while its acclaimed fine-dining establishments, including the “king of offal” Diego Rossi, Trippa, Matias Perdomo, Contraste , Antonio Guida, Seta or Davide Oldani, D’O reflect its refined gastronomic reputation. Beyond fine dining, the city’s story is told through historic institutions like Peck, Marchesi 1824, and Camparino, places where flavour and ritual meet. This October, The Best Chef Awards honours Milan not only as a destination, but as a stage for culinary creativity and evolution.

It’s this intersection of freedom and innovation that makes Milan the perfect host for The Best Chef Awards 2025. In this city, every plate, every product, and every conversation tell a story of excellence, identity, and (r)evolution.

New Zealand’s vibrant culinary identity was on full display at The Best Chef Awards Dubai 2024, with Vaughan Mabee of Amisfield in Queenstown recognised in last year’s ranking. This recognition reflects the country’s rising global influence and ongoing dedication to culinary craft, creativity, and excellence.

Joanna Slusarczyk, PHD, COO and founder of The Best Chef Awards, says: “Milan is more than a city. It is a culinary identity. It embodies everything we stand for at The Best Chef: tradition, creativity and a commitment to excellence. From its rich gastronomic heritage to its spirit of innovation, Milan lives and breathes food culture. It is where recipes become stories, and stories become movements. We could not think of a more meaningful place to host this year’s edition. A city that continues to shape the global narrative of what it means to truly cook, create and connect.”

Massimo Bottura, Chef Patron of Osteria Francescana and longtime advocate for preserving Italian culinary culture, shared: “Milan is preparing to shine a spotlight on the world of contemporary cuisine. The Best Chef Awards will bring ideas, visions, and flavours to the city, a moment where food will be imagined, narrated, and experienced as both a form of art and a universal language.”

The Best Chef Awards 2025 Milan is not just a gathering. It is a manifesto. A call to honour culinary legacies, explore new frontiers and build a future rooted in taste, tradition and transformation.

© Scoop Media