Paris:
Two Singapore restaurants have been awarded the maximum three Michelin stars for the first time ever, the French-based culinary guide said Tuesday.
Odette and Les Amis, which both serve French haute cuisine, got top marks from the gastronomic bible, putting them on the same level as the some of the world’s best restaurants.
Both are run by French-born chefs, with Sebastian Lepinoy of Les Amis adding to the two stars he picked when Michelin launched its first Singapore guide in 2016.
Chef Julien Royer, who named his restaurant after his grandmother Odette, was praised for the “subtle Asian touches” he matched with “highly-mastered French technique”.
He said his grandmother showed him “how the most remarkable dishes can come from the purest ingredients and taught me the importance of adding that ‘little something’ to create dishes that excite the palate and fill the heart.”
Only 133 restaurants in the world have three Michelin stars, with Japan heading the ranking with 31, followed by France with 27.
Hong Kong and Macau come in fifth with 10 top-rated restaurants between them.
Renowned for its street food, Singapore is “clearly positioned as a leading gastronomic destination”, said Michelin’s new head Gwendal Poullennec.
“With this historic first… Singapore enters a new dimension in the eyes of food lovers,” he added.
Five restaurants now have two stars in the city state — Saint Pierre, Shisen Hanten, Shoukouwa, Waku Ghin and the Nordic-Asian establishment Zen — while 37 more got one star.
