Foodie Buzz: Awards Ceremony for 2012 Zagat London Restaurants Guide

Dinner by Heston BlumenthalToday was the annual London Zagat Survey Awards presentation, held at London’s 45 Park Lane, the new hotel from The Dorchester Collection. Coinciding with the release of the 2012 Zagat London Restaurants Guide, the ceremony took place in the hotel’s Cut restaurant by Wolfgang Puck.

We’ve been following along on Twitter and were pleased to see Heston Blumenthal’s Dinner at the Mandarin Oriental (pictured) get recognition as the “top newcomer.” Brett Graham's Michelin two-starred Ledbury won the award for best food for the second year in a row, with Sketch picking up the prize for best decor and the Waterside Inn in Bray, Berkshire, coming top for service. The Wolseley was named the most popular restaurant overall.

Other fun survey stats: 53 percent consider it “rude & inappropriate” to text/tweet at the table whilst 74 percent think it’s ok to take pictures of their food. Celebrity chefs are luring diners to new restaurants, with 38 percent saying they are influenced by the big names. 38 percent diners think the London restaurant scene is better this year than in 2011. We agree! Check out our article on the London restaurant scene in the May issue of Luxury Travel Advisor.

Related news: Zagat Survey was recently acquired by Google. Trusted as the “gastronomic bible,” Zagat is the leading provider of consumer survey-based information on where to eat, drink, stay & play worldwide.