As many in the culinary world have expected for months now, the World’s Best 50 Restaurants awards are heading down under.

But today’s announcement in New York City threw at least one spanner into the rumour mill’s works, with the age-old rivalry of our two largest cities and their restaurant scenes set to flare up as a result.

While many supposed that Sydney would be awarded the coveted hosting gig – the rumour first surfaced in March, when the regional Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants list was announced in Bangkok – Melbourne has wound up getting the guernsey.

This shouldn’t really be that surprising. For the past two years, Ben Shewry’s Ripponlea-based Attica has been the only Australian restaurant in the top 50, while Dan Hunter’s Brae, 138km southwest of the city in the regional Victorian town of Birregurra, last week leaped from 87th to 65th on the group’s second-tier list.

Meanwhile, Sydney’s Quay slipped 40 positions to 98th, and Sepia, which last year received the group’s “One to Watch” award, is believed to have slipped off it altogether.

On the other hand, Sydney has historically been home to Australia’s list-worthy restaurants: Rockpool, Marque (which similarly won the “One to Watch” award before dropping off the list) and Momofuku Seiobo have all previously featured in one tier or another, while Tetsuya’s enjoyed an unbroken run of appearances in the top 50 between 2002 and 2010. (It was relegated to the second tier in 2011 and 2012.)

We will find out whether Attica has managed to maintain or better its position on the list – it’s currently sitting at a very respectable 32nd – when this year’s top 50 is announced tomorrow morning.

The hosting announcement was made by the World’s 50 Best’s William Drew and Tourism Australia’s Lisa Ronson.

“There’s so much international interest in Australia as a food destination,” Drew said in a statement. “It’s exciting for us to have the opportunity to take the events program to this unique country.”

It will be only the second time the awards have been held outside of London, following New York this year.

Originally the brainchild of Britain’s Restaurant magazine, the World’s Best 50 Restaurants list – which was for a long time known colloquially as “the San Pellegrino list,” though it dropped the water company’s title rights this year – is now compiled independently.

It is voted on by an international panel of almost 1000 food writers, critics, chefs, restaurateurs and – in the words of the group’s website – “highly regarded ‘gastronomes’.”

While the decisions of these “gastronomes” never fail to spark controversy, and while the list itself has been dismissed by some as faddish, cliquish or worse, there is no doubting its status as the most important ranking system of its kind, nor denying the reasons it has risen to that position.

In addition to charting trends and movements in global gastronomy – and, some would say, helping to shape them – it is also a truly global measuring stick, unlike the more geographically limited Michelin system.

The announcement of the 2016 World’s Best 50 Restaurants list and awards will take place in New York City at 10am AEST tomorrow and will be streamed live at www.finedininglovers.com.