Ramsay's is flipping expensive

The average bill for dinner, a glass of wine and a tip at Restaurant Gordon Ramsay comes to £117 a head, according to a survey in Forbes magazine.

But even that is a snip compared with the dearest place on earth to eat: Aragawa, a small steakhouse in Tokyo's Shinbashi district. Dinner for one will average £216.

The top dining room in Paris also outdoes Ramsay, with an average bill of £136 per head at Alain Ducasse au Plaza Athénée.

But despite soaring prices, trying to secure tables at the world's top restaurants has never been more competitive, according to the list's compilers Tim and Nina Zagat.

"What's the recipe for dining at one of the world's most expensive restaurants? Months on a waiting list and Herculean wallet strength," they said.

"Top-notch restaurants have never been this good. For a lot of reasons we have been going through a world revolution in the improvement of food at every level.

"You can now get foods from all over the world - the ability to pack and ship food is constantly improving. The audience is increasingly sophisticated. Finally, people doing the cooking have become respected and in some cases celebrities."

Tables at Restaurant Gordon Ramsay - there are only 13, with five seating two - are notoriously difficult to reserve. Bookings are only available two months in advance and each night's block of tables is normally snapped up within hours of the phone line opening at 9am.

Dinner at the venue, which has three Michelin stars, is also likely to cost more than the Forbes estimate, which adds only one alcoholic drink. The à-la-carte menu costs £85 for three courses plus a 12.5 per cent "discretionary" gratuity. That takes the cost before drinks to £95.63.

Tonight's menu features a starter of ravioli of lobster, langoustine and salmon poached in a light bisque with a lemon grass and chervil velouté; a main course of roasted Anjou pigeon with foie gras, braised cabbage, horseradish purée and a ruby port jus; and desserts such as lime parfait with melon sorbet, honeycomb and chocolate sauce. There is also a seven-course Menu Prestige for £110 and a £40 set lunch.

The Forbes list selected the dearest restaurants in culinary capitals outside the US.