Michelin Tokyo 2017, Japanese food mecca boasts 227 star-studded restaurants

Dec 6 2016, 11:50 | by Michela Becchi

The Michelin Guide celebrates its tenth year reviewing Tokyo, officially the city with the most Michelin star restaurants in the world, on a total of 543 venues listed, 227 were bestowed the coveted star. The 12 recipients of the 3 stars have been confirmed; there are new entry listings in the 2 and 1 categories, including a number of Italian restaurants.

Ten years in Tokyo

Ten years ago the Michelin Guide first released its Tokyo issue, celebrating its gargantuan food offer. Today, with the latest release of the 2017 edition, the guide proclaims a city record that will be hard to defeat: 543 listings (of which 227 are star recipients!) overarching the breadth of styles, cuisines and ambitions that co-inhabit the Japanese city, considered “one of the world’s most interesting food scenes” according to the French publisher. The city in fact boasts twelve 3-star restaurants, among which four veterans like Joel Robuchon, Hiroyuki Kanda (Kanda), Shuzo Kishidaqui (Quintessence, haute cuisine champion in Japan), Jiro Ono (of renowned Sukiyabashi Jiro), which possess the highest recognition since the first release a decade ago. No new additions in the highest ranking this year, but Tokyo dining will celebrate the addition of four new venues to the list of 2-star restaurants (raising the total to 54), and a whopping 19 venues awarded a 1-star for the first time, including the first ever macaron (raising the 1-star list to 161 listings). Considering the powerful French-inspired fine dining monopoly, celebrations have doubled, given the broad reach of this year’s awards.

The 2017 issue, the newly added stars

The four newly added 2-star restaurants are all local cuisine establishments, even if in different applications: high profile sushi at Amamoto andMasuda, traditional cuisine and tempura at Miyasaka and Ginya. The situation is different on the 1-star podium, with four French cuisines – Ciel et Sol, Craftale, Nabeno-Ism and L'Orgueil – who all earn their first star along with local venues like ramen bar Nakiryu (this is the second ramen bar to earn the Michelin recognition), as well as three Italian-inspired restaurants: Honda, Tacubo and Regalo, who now rub elbows with the restaurant of chef Luca Fantin at Hotel Bulgari, at the top floor of the Ginza Tower. Chef Tetsuya Honda, at the helm of the eponymous restaurant was trained in France and Italy before opening his fine dining restaurant seating 25 in Kita-Aoyama. Tacubo, known in town as Aria di Tacubo, is guided by a Japanese chef whose passion for Italy is evident in his choice of ingredients and his interpretation of classic Italian cuisine, fresh hand-stretched pastas included. In order to have an overall at-a-glance list of Italian restaurants worldwide, the Gambero Rosso Top Italian Restaurants in the World guide, will e released in March 2017. In the meantime, here’s the list of the new “stars” of Michelin Tokyo.

Three stars

-Ishikawa

-Joel Robuchon

-Kanda

-Kohaku

-Makimura

-Quintessence

-Ryugin

-Saito

-SukiyabashiJiroHonten

-Yamadaya

-Yoshitake