Global travel trends just got more delicious. The name of the new concept, which combines destination dining, celebration and vacation travel, is the food pilgrimage.  Restaurant Magazine's annual Top 50 Restaurant listings have become so influential that more and more people are planning trips — including anniversaries — inspired by these restaurants. You choose a restaurant you fancy, reserve a table (important to do this first as some have long wait lists) and then you book your trip.

In celebration of this anniversary issue of Cuisine Noir magazine — and to inspire you — we'll give you a breakdown of Restaurant Magazine's 2011 Top 12 list. In each case, we'll give a brief description of the food/chef (in some cases with video and interview links), a direct link to the Web site so you can click through to see the menu and delight in pictures of the food and "What to do when you're there" links to cities and in some cases, the region.

Please don't just think only in terms of celebrating the anniversary of your marriage with a food-inspired pilgrimage. That could leave many of us out in the cold! I have a friend who celebrates the anniversary of her divorce each year. Use your imagination. Let any significant event be inspiration for a celebration.

Denmark, the United States, Japan, Brazil, France, Spain. Let the World's Top 12 restaurants inspire you.

1. Noma, Copenhagen, Denmark
   To quote from the Restaurant Magazine judges, "Noma is best known for its fanatical approach to foraging but there is much more to this ground-breaking restaurant than the mere picking of Mother Nature's pocket. It's the entire package, from its ingredient ingenuity to flawless execution, that makes it a beacon of excellence and which leads to an emotive, intense, liberating way of eating, unlike any other."

   Noma is not about olive oil, foie gras, sun-dried tomatoes and black olives. They don't have these in Denmark. It's too cold! So, René Redzepi, head chef and owner, has found his own Nordic alternatives and in so doing is credited with having reinvented Nordic cuisine. To quote him: "If you work with me you will often start your day in the forest or on the sea shore foraging. If you see how a plant grows and you taste it in situ you have a perfect example of how it should taste on the plate."

   See René Redzepi in this Ted "Festival of Ideas" video talking about his restaurant secrets.
   See Redzepi on You Tube making his signature Noma dish: The Sea.
   Watch Redzepi making his signature Noma dish: The hen and the egg.

   Copenhagen, with a history dating back to 1043, is filled with historic landmarks, significant buildings and interesting sights. See Copenhagen's Top 10 Attractions here.

2. El Celler de Can Roca, Girona, Spain
   At El Celler de Can Roca, brothers Joan, Josep and Jordi Roca focus on "emotional cuisine" using ingredients and combinations of ingredients that trigger childhood memories and take diners back in time.

   Girona, a day-tripper hop from Barcelona (the train journey takes less than two hours), is a popular tourist destination.

   Visit the official Girona website here. To see pictures, Google "images Girona, Spain."

3. Mugaritz, Errenteria, Spain
   To quote from the Restaurant Magazine judges: "Mugaritz has two dégustation menus that change daily according to what chef Andoni Luis Aduriz can get his hands on at the street markets and what's growing in the restaurant's herb garden. Whatever happens, you can expect to sample the team's intricate dishes that seek to reconnect diners with nature. His self-dubbed 'techno-emotional' approach sees the appliance of science and a rigorous understanding of ingredients jostle with produce-driven cuisine."

   Errenteria, in northern Spain, is near San Sebastián, where Arzak (see restaurant Number 8) is located. Check out the San Sebastián reference.

4. Osteria Francescana, Modena, Italy
   Much of the food at Osteria Francescana takes its inspiration from the art world. But the culinary heritage of the Emilia-Romagna region is chef Massimo Bottura's other muse and the menu offers unexpected combinations of traditional ingredients plus innovation and irreverence.

   Northern Italy's Emilia-Romagna region is a major cultural and tourist center famous for its food and automobile production (Ferrari, Lamborghini, Maserati and Ducati). It is home to the Renaissance cities of Modena (known for its narrow cobblestone streets, red and ochre buildings, fashionable shops, contemporary art exhibitions and Balsamic vinegar), Parma and Ferrara.

5. The Fat Duck, Bray, United Kingdom
   Heston Blumenthal's tiny world-famous The Fat Duck restaurant in the English village of Bray, on the banks of the River Thames, has blazed a trail for experimental cooking internationally. One of its enduring features, according Restaurant Magazine judges, is that it is also brilliant fun. "Sure, guests' sensory perceptions are challenged, their notion of possibility expanded, but never in a po-faced way. Instead, gourmand pilgrims can be witnessed smiling and laughing their way through a foodie marathon."

   The distance from London to Bray is 25.5 miles. See the Visit London site here.

6. Alinea, Chicago, United States
   The top U.S. restaurant on the list, according to Restaurant Magazine judges: "Alinea represents one of the most radical re-imaginings of fine food by any chef in American history and has propelled Grant Achatz to chef superstardom. Everything about his restaurant is unique, from the deconstructed food, unfamiliar flavor combinations and theater to the tableware, with dishes served in and on all manner of implements: test tubes, cylinders, multi-layered bowls that come apart."

   Visit Explore Chicago for ideas on what to do when you go.

7. D.O.M., São Paulo, Brazil
   Chef Alex Atala's focus is exploring the gastronomic possibilities of Brazilian cuisine. His restaurant, D.O.M., is located in São Paulo, the largest city in Brazil, the world's eighth largest city by population and the world's 10th richest city (expected to be the sixth richest by 2025). Atala fuses Brazilian heritage with rigorous French cooking techniques. He scours the Amazon for indigenous ingredients, working from the principle that good ingredients are at the heart of any dish and inspire the creative process.

   Read a full interview with Alex Atala here.
   See Atala's recipe for scallops with coconut milk.
   See 20 great things to do in São Paulo here.

8. Arzak, San Sebastián, Spain
   To quote from the Restaurant Magazine judges: "If you like your food pretty, Arzak is the place. Father-and-daughter team Juan Mari Arzak and Elena Arzak Espina's plates look fantastic: striking, colorful and imaginative ... balancing tradition and innovation."

   San Sebastián, one of Spain's most popular tourist destinations, is located in the north on the Bay of Biscay coast close to the French border. See a slideshow: 36 Hours in San Sebastián.

9. Le Chateaubriand, Paris, France
   Restaurant Magazine judges describe Le Chateaubriand as effortlessly cool, understated yet accomplished, democratic, affordable and perhaps most importantly, fun with a lack of airs and graces (as in hard chairs and bare tables, a take-it-or-leave-it five-course fixed-price menu and a champion of natural wines). To quote from the New York Times: "Inaki Aizpitarte, the rock-star chef of this restaurant, speaks another dialect entirely. In his case, it's Basque: strong, palate-rousing flavors and brash presentations that smack of the art student."
   Read an article on Le Chateaubriand and chef Inaki Aizpitarte here.

   See 20 great things to do in Paris here.

10. Per Se, New York, United States
    According to the Restaurant Magazine judges, Thomas Keller has changed the menu at Per Se— his "urban interpretation" of his French Laundry in (Yountville) California — every day since the restaurant opened nearly eight years ago; "that's something like 30,000 different dishes, some re-introduced from prior seasons but continuously refined."  The restaurant offers two unique nine-course tasting menus a day to "excite your mind, satisfy your appetite and pique your curiosity."

    See the official guide to New York City attractions.

11. Daniel, New York, United States
    According to Restaurant Magazine judges, chef Daniel Boulud melds unexpected ingredients and create dishes you won't see on any other menu, which makes his  Manhattan restaurant, Daniel, "an exquisite eating-out experience." Boulud, from Lyon, France, is inspired by the rhythm of the seasons and his soulful cooking, which is rooted in French cuisine, is driven by fine ingredients.

    See 10 (more) things to do in New York.

12. Les Creations de Narisawa, Tokyo, Japan
    The first Japanese restaurant to make the Top Restaurant list has a distinct French accent, but chef-owner Yoshihiro Narisawa at Les Creations de Narisawa is not just producing Gallic haute cuisine with a Pacific edge. He is influenced by the landscape and the seasons and themes of soil, water, fire, charcoal and forest.

    See 10 things to do in Tokyo here.

    See Restaurant Magazine's full list of the S.Pellegrino–sponsored World's 50 Best Restaurants 2011 winners here.

    Happy anniversary good eating and happy travels!