Michelin new stars in Tokyo (Asia 2018)

Categories All posts0 Comments

Michelin – new stars in 2018 Tokyo

a) The latest edition of the Michelin guide for Tokyo presents 82 new restaurants, including five new two-star establishments and 23 entities garnering single stars. All of the 12 three-star restaurants in Tokyo have retained their prestigious status, including the world-famous sushi restaurant Sukiyabashi Jiro Honten, Azabu Yukimura (Kyoto cuisine) and Joel Robuchon (French fine dining).

Among the new restaurants awarded two stars are Chinese restaurant Sazenka, Hommage (French cuisine), and Den. The Michelin Guide Tokyo 2018 lists 12 restaurants at three stars, 56 at two stars and 166 at one star.

The book also highlights 278 establishments in its “Bib Gourmand” section, which offer quality food at affordable prices. This year 59 new entries were added to that list.

According to Michelin’s (European) definition, one-star restaurants offer high quality cooking worth a stop during travel, two-star eateries offer excellent cooking worth a detour and three-star spots provide exceptional cuisine worth a special journey.

In terms of the number of stars awarded (234), Tokyo is the top city among culinary destinations in 30 countries covered by Michelin, followed by Paris.

A spokesperson for Michelin Guide Tokyo, however, pointed out that a simple tally of stars may not tell the whole story, since populations vary in each city. For example, Tokyo is home to about 13.7 million compared with Paris’ 2.34 million.

Even so, Tokyo stands out it shows that Tokyo is the world center of gastronomy.

Tokyo is the No. 1 city in the world for dining out. The Michelin guide reflects the great ability and skills found in Tokyo … the rich variety of the selection is testament to the gastronomic strength of Tokyo. Even two ramen restaurants received one-star ratings: Japanese Soba Noodles Tsuta and Nakiryu.

The Tokyo edition was first published in November 2007 to become the first Michelin guide outside Europe and the United States.

b) Hong Kong and Macau 2018
In this new selection, all the restaurants awarded three-stars maintain their distinctions: Bo Innovation, L’Atelier de Joël Robuchon, Lung King Heen, 8 ½ Otto e Mezzo-Bombana, Sushi Shikon, T’ang Court, all located in Hong Kong, as well as Robuchon au Dôme and The Eight in Macau.

Only slightly more than a hundred restaurants enjoy this unique distinction worldwide.
The MICHELIN guide 2018 also was proud to distinguish numerous two-star establishments, for total of 11 restaurants in Hong Kong and 5 in Macau.

Eight new restaurants are awarded one star in this year’s selection, all located in Hong Kong. Among them, Arcane, led by the Aussie chef Shane OSBORN, offering a cuisine based on down to earth recipes and quality ingredients, turned into artistic culinary creations in an open kitchen; Kaiseki Den by Saotome a restaurant relocated and renamed in 2017, where chef SAOTOME serves Japanese cuisine based on the freshest food in season, like his signature dishes of sea urchin truffle rice and chargrilled wagyu beef. Already well-known by foodies from Singapore and Shanghai, the first Hong Kong branch of Imperial Treasure also gains one star in the MICHELIN guide Hong Kong Macau 2018. In this stylish dining room with panoramic views of the harbor, diners can enjoy refined Chinese cuisine, such as poached garoupa in fish soup with crispy rice and stuffed crab shell. Two Cantonese restaurants are awarded one star: Ying Jee Club where clients can enjoy traditional Cantonese cuisine with a touch of finesse -like their signature crispy salted chicken- served in an elegant and contemporary dining hall and Yee Tung Heen, which offer traditional Cantonese favorites but also serves specialties of a more creative inspiration, prepared with seasonal ingredients.

c) Shanghai
In this new selection, the restaurant ULTRAVIOLET by Paul Pairet has been awarded three stars. Paul PAIRET offers avant-garde cuisine of a very high standard, a real gourmet journey.

T’ang Court, which won three stars in 2017, and all the restaurants awarded two stars last year retain their stars in 2018: 8 ½ Otto e Mezzo Bombana, L’Atelier de Joël Robuchon, Canton 8, Yi Long Court, YongFoo Elite and Imperial Treasure.

5 new restaurants are awarded one star in the MICHELIN Guide Shanghai 2018: Bo Shanghai, where chef Alvin LEUNG, who already has three stars for his hongkongese restaurant, offers creative and innovative cuisine inspired by the eight most famous flavours in China using a mix of international and local ingredients; Yong Fu where the chef uses high quality seasonal products to offer an authentic cuisine that highlights the specialties of Ningbo, his hometown. Wujie (The Bund), which offers vegetarian cuisine with light touches of western influences, also gets a star this year, as does Jean- Georges one of the most popular restaurants in the city, where chef Jean-Georges VONGERICHTEN serves his guests French cuisine in a luxurious setting. Finally, the restaurant Taian Table, which has moved into a new space and offers innovative contemporary cuisine, also receives one star.

In total, Shanghai has 22 one-star restaurants in the MICHELIN Guide 2018.

Living in style.