Vietnam voted Asia's best culinary destination for first time

The Southeast Asian country surpassed rivals including China, Malaysia, Singapore, South Korea and Thailand to claim the title at the third edition of the awards, the organizing board announced at the recent awards ceremony.

Rina van Staden, director of the annual awards, said that the results were based on a year-long search for the world's top culinary brands, with both culinary experts and the public voting.

The World Culinary Awards is the sister event of the World Travel Awards, which was launched in 1993 to acknowledge excellence in the travel and tourism industry. It has been described as the "travel industry's equivalent of the Oscars."

Vietnamese cuisine has become better known around the world over the last couple of years with international chefs and prestigious food magazines praising several national dishes.

British celebrity chef and television personality Gordon Ramsay recently named Laos and Vietnam the world's top food destinations, calling the latter an "extraordinary melting pot of great food."

On December 1, the world's most influential restaurant ranking guide Michelin Guide announced it has begun evaluating restaurants in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City for the first time ever.