Chez Panisse is the most accessible of the American entries, especially if you do the upstairs cafe. Well worth the visit if you're remotely in the area. The closest I've come to eating at the French Laundry is about where the photographer is.

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wow, at least i've been to one out of the top 100...

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i think that list is pretty crappy, not because the restaurants aren't the best but because they don't even tell what they ate, what service they had, how much it cost, how long it took to eat, or anything about them. it's just a list. this is the internet, it's easy to make hyperlinks and there are no word count limitations.

anyways, do you infer that anything you order would be "the best" or do they have special dishes? No question of "best vs price" either? what makes them the best?

Also, the sponsors of the "best" list seem to have really close ties to the "best". if i believed in conspiracies, i'd say this list has more to do with marketing than restaurant quality. fortunately, i give them the benefit of the doubt.

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My wife and I have been fortunate to have eaten in several of the restaurants on your list (all of the London & Bray based ones), including Yountvilles finest and without doubt agree that El Bulli leads where others follow and richly deserves its top position. If you ever get the chance, jump at it and savour the experience, you’ll never forget it, the “Gastronomic tasting menu” (27 courses and 4 hours to eat) is awesome. Take time to look around you at the other diners, during our visit everybody was so excited to be there (from the Florida, Brazil, France)
We have also eaten in many more that deserve to be on the list such as;
Susur Lee in Toronto; Comerce 24 in Barcelona; El raco den Freixa in Barcelona.

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