The world’s 50 best restaurants have been announced for 2009.

Winning restaurants in this year’s S. Pellegrino World’s 50 Best list have pledged their support for charity Action Against Hunger by donating meals and experiences to be sold on eBay.

Food lovers will be able to bid for meals at some of the greatest restaurants in the world by bidding for them on the auction website. All proceeds from the sale will go to the humanitarian organisation, which helps save the lives of malnourished children.

In the eighth annual listing of The S.Pellegrino World’s 50 Best Restaurants, El Bulli’s Ferran Adrià has topped the worldwide poll of 806 chefs, critics and other industry experts for the fourth year running.

Heston Blumenthal’s The Fat Duck retains second place, whilst Copenhagen’s Noma restaurant with its youthful head chef Rene Redzepi ranks third, making an exciting addition to the world’s greatest chefs trinity. Noma, which rises 7 places, also takes this year’s Chef’s Choice Award.

Last year’s Chef’s Choice, Mugaritz, retains its highest ever position at number four, whilst another Spanish restaurant, El Celler de Can Roca, rises 21 places to the fifth place making it 2009’s highest climber. With the eponymous restaurant Arzak in eighth position, Spain can claim more restaurants at the very top echelons of the list than any other country.

Thomas Keller’s New York restaurant Per Se strikes the sixth position and with The French Laundry also well placed on the list, this year, Keller is the only restaurateur with two restaurants in the top 50.

Jean-Michel Grand, Action Against Hunger’s Executive Director, said: “We are absolutely delighted, and immensely grateful, that so many of The S. Pellegrino World’s 50 Best Restaurants 2009 winners have pledged their support by donating such wonderful ‘once in a lifetime’ meals and experiences, that will undoubtedly make for an exciting auction to help raise much needed funds for Action Against Hunger.”

Bidding begins on 21 April – visit http://myworld.ebay.co.uk/actionagainsthungeruk ^[1] to view the full list of participating restaurants and place your bid.