7 restaurants received their first Michelin star after a year fraught with challenges in Singapore’s dining sector.
by Kenneth SZ Goh / July 12, 2022
Modern Indian restaurant Thevar and progressive restaurant Cloudstreet were elevated to two-Michelin-starred status in last night’s Michelin Guide Singapore 2022 Star Revelation ceremony. These two restaurants received the one-starred distinction for the first time last year.
There were no surprises in the most prestigious category of the night — the three-starred category, which symbolises “exceptional cuisine, worth a special journey”. Three restaurants retained the highly-coveted accolade: Les Amis, Odette and Zén.
Rishi Naleendra, chef-owner of Cloudstreet, says: “This is a dream come through – our restaurant team has improved and progressed during the pandemic; we have taken a lot of risks and these have paid off.”
Chef Mano Thevar of Thevar says: “This is a proud moment for me as I am working with the Malaysian-Indian flavours that I grew up with in Penang. I hope this is a way of putting Indian cuisine on a global map.”
The winners were revealed at a gala dinner and ceremony held at the Marina Bay Sands on 12 July — the first in-person event held by the Michelin Guide since 2019. The event was attended by more than 400 corporate honchos and professionals from the food and beverage industry.
7 new one-starred restaurants
The one-starred category, which stands for ‘high quality cooking, worth a stop!’, saw the most movements.
A total of seven out of the 42 one-starred restaurants received the one-star accolade for the first time. They are modern Australian barbecue restaurant Burnt Ends, which relocated to Dempsey Hill last year; Euphoria, which is helmed by local chef Jason Tan; Hamamoto by former Kisho chef Kazu Hamamoto; La Dame de Pic, the Singapore outpost of three-starred Maison Pic in France; Marguerite by chef-owner Michael Wilson; contemporary Korean restaurant Na:eum and Rêve, which opened last November. A total of 42 restaurants received the one-star distinction.
Despite a change in chefs over the past year, Esora and Braci managed to retain their one-starred accolade.
Drop-outs in the one-starred category include Garibaldi and Shinji (Tanglin Road).
Among the one-starred establishments, the only hawker establishment is Hill Street Tai Hwa Pork Noodle, which has received this accolade since 2016. Owner Mr Tang Chay Seng says in Mandarin: “This is still a valuable award after all these years and I will work hard to retain it.”
Chef-owner of Euphoria Jason Tan says: “Having a star means a lot as opening Euphoria with my wife is a milestone close to our hearts. After six years with my previous restaurant, it is great to get recognition for doing something different.”
Na:eum’s Chef Louis Han says: “As my restaurant is still very new, it is great to have one star and I plan to celebrate this (achievement) with champagne!”
A total of 52 restaurants received Michelin stars this year — four more than last year. The revelation of the starred restaurants comes one week after the Bib Gourmand results were announced.
(Related: Chef Barry Quek flies the flag for Singapore flavours in Hong Kong)
New awards to empower restaurant professionals
In addition to the Young Chef Award, the Guide also added two awards to empower more professionals in the dining industry, which have been embattled with challenges such as skilled manpower shortage and rising food prices over the past year.
To shine the spotlight on the importance of front-of-house staff, the Guide has introduced the Welcome & Service Award, which recognizes the talent and passion of service staff, which went to Samantha Goh of Saint Pierre, while chef-sommelier Eric Eu of three-starred Les Amis received the Sommelier Award.
The Young Chef Award, which was introduced last year, went to Louis Han, chef-owner of Na:eum, which also received the one-starred accolade for the first time.
In an interview with The Peak before the ceremony, Mr Gwendal Poullennec, International Director of the Michelin Guides, says: “After putting the spotlight on chefs, it’s time also to put the spotlight on the wonderful front-of-house teams, and never forget that a great gastronomy experience is about teamwork.”
He adds that the Michelin Guide hopes to foster a positive impact on the dining industry by “motivating more restaurant professionals and paving more possibilities for them in the industry.”
The full list
Restaurants with three stars
Les Amis
Odette
Zén
Restaurants with two stars
Jaan by Kirk Westaway
Saint Pierre
Shisen Hanten
Shoukouwa
Waku Ghin
Cloudstreet (New)
Thevar (New)
Restaurants with one star
Alma
Art
Basque Kitchen by Aitor Basque
Béni
Braci
Buona Terra
Burnt Ends (New – Relocated)
Candlenut
Chef Kang’s
Cut
Cure
Esora
Euphoria (New)
Hamamoto
Hill Street Tai Hwa Pork Noodle
Iggy’s
Imperial Treasure Fine Teochew Cuisine (Orchard)
Jag
Labyrinth
Lei Garden
Lerouy (New – Relocated)
Ma Cuisine
Marguerite
Meta
Nae:um
Nouri
Oshino
Putien (Kitchener Road)
Rêve (New)
Rhubarb
Shang Palace
Shinji (Bras Basah Road)
Sommer
Summer Palace
Summer Pavilion
Sushi Ichi
Sushi Kimura
Table65
Terra
Whitegrass
28 Wilkie
(Related: Hawker Chan continues chopping on — Michelin star or not)
