HAKU’s Chef Agustin Balbi claims no.87 spot on the Best Chef Awards Top 100 list 2019

HAKU Hong Kong’s Executive Chef Agustin Balbi has debuted on the prestigious Best Chef Awards 2019 Top 100 list at no.87. The coveted awards list distinguishes the world’s finest culinary talent as recognised by chefs and food lovers across the globe, and this year, the no.1 spot was claimed by Swedish chef Björn Frantzén. From Hong Kong, Agustin Balbi featured as only one of two entries alongside Richard Ekkebus, culinary director of Amber at The Landmark Mandarin Oriental Hong Kong, who took the no.34 spot this year.

On 24th September, The Best Chef Awards revealed the winners from the Top 100 finalists of 2019 during a live-streamed ceremony at the University of Barcelona. The list, which features revered culinary figures such as Massimo Bottura and Andre Chiang, is highly regarded as the most influential awards system in the world. The list is determined by a voting process that begins with chefs voting for each other, taking into consideration their peers’ talent, experience, potential and even personality. The voting baton is then handed off to culinary professionals, photographers, artists, and “fol-LOVERs” – the brand’s expansive social media audience of close to 1.5 million followers.

“We are very happy to receive this great recognition and I am very humble and honored that some great chefs around the world had voted for us. This is a huge recognition for the team, a sign that we are on the right path. I am proud to represent Hong Kong on the Top 100 list along with a true trailblazer, Chef Richard Ekkebus of Amber, and I hope to continue learning from and receiving inspiration from my peers,” says HAKU Executive Chef Agustin Balbi.