Food critic Andy Hayler says local Michelin Guide gets it badly wrong
Food critic Andy Hayler has eaten at every top Michelin restaurant in the world. He tells Giovanna Dunmall how the Hong Kong and Macau guide has got it horribly wrong
Since its launch in 2009, the Michelin Guide Hong Kong & Macau has baffled and infuriated local food-lovers, chefs and critics alike because of its eccentric choices. The guide was initially charged with focusing too much on high-end places (not an entirely fair accusation, as this is a Michelin guide after all).
But it soon started giving stars to dim sum restaurants, and an Indian restaurant whose owner freely admits he has never been to the subcontinent and adapts the food to local tastes. More alarmingly, restaurants have achieved three-star status almost overnight, and places that would arguably not be awarded stars elsewhere have been awarded two or even three of them. Others have been overlooked. The listings for the sixth edition of the Michelin guide were announced yesterday, and we spoke to entrepreneur, author, blogger and food critic Andy Hayler, the only man to have eaten at almost every three-star establishment in the world. He believes the company's inspection process, which is based on multiple anonymous visits, no advertising, and no fees, "is probably about the best you could possibly design".
So what is going on with the Hong Kong & Macau edition he wonders?
What's the most worrying thing about the guide?
The scores it has given have been extraordinarily erratic in a way that isn't traditionally true of Michelin. That fact certainly isn't true of another relative newcomer, the Japan guide. The whole venture seems to be wildly unpredictable.
Can you give me some examples?