Michelin food guide launched its first edition on the Chinese mainland yesterday, awarding its highly-prized stars to top-tier restaurants, including a Cantonese establishment with just six tables, and in the process cooked up a storm among local gourmets.
T'ang Court, inside Langham Shanghai, in Xintiandi was awarded three Michelin stars and hailed as "exceptional cuisine, worth a special journey" in the Michelin Guide Shanghai 2017.
The guide awarded two stars to seven restaurants with more than half of them offering a variety of Chinese cuisines, including two stars for Canton 8 — a popular lunchtime spot catering to local families, Michelin said.
Another 18 restaurants were given one star.
In its first edition, Cantonese restaurants emerged the biggest winner, with only a few Shanghainese restaurants making the grade, triggering a debate among food connoisseurs for ignoring local flavors.
"The Michelin Guide announced its recommendation for the best restaurants in Shanghai today, but I think it does not cater to the taste of Shanghainese," said Joey Ma, a local editor who has tried out half of the star-rated restaurants listed in the guide.
A food critic, Xu Qianlai said "most of Michelin Guide's inspectors are from overseas or from Hong Kong and Macau. It is difficult for them to capture the essence of local delicacies."
But Michael Ellis, Michelin Guide International Director, disputed that and said the team had an inspector from Shanghai, and it took them more than a year to come up with the final selection.
"You can agree or disagree with the result, but I think what you can not disregard is the fact that we have our own inspectors, our methods, and our criteria."
He insisted that the number of Shanghainese restaurants covered in the guide still ranked the second among Chinese cuisine restaurants, and Canton 8, which has a set menu for 48 yuan ($ 7), is also included in the two-starred restaurants — among the least expensive two-starred restaurants in the world.
"In this guide, you will find quite a few restaurants that are local and affordable," he insisted.
