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Street food chef's stall becomes world's first to earn Michelin star

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Re: Street food chef's stall becomes world's first to earn Michelin star

#11

Post by davidmr »

xorgar831 wrote: post #6

I thought Michelin stars were about the whole restaurant experience, and especially the consistency. That's interesting they said it was just about the food in the video, that really opens up the award to a more contemporary foodie audience, which is interested in where to get the most delicious X, which is rarely even expensive.

I think in general the hawker stands are such an integral part of the Singaporean culinary culture that, even as an homage, you'd have to honor that culture by finding the best one to give a star to.

I'm certain that his food is outstanding, but it's also a good move to ingratiate yourselves with the locals as you start your business there.

As an aside, I have never been anywhere with more consistently amazing food than Singapore. You can pay $300 for a fabulous meal or $7 for an almost equally fabulous one. The first time I went, I ate at a couple of high-end restaurants, but on all my subsequent trips, I've basically just wandered around and eaten at random. I've never been disappointed.

Re: Street food chef's stall becomes world's first to earn Michelin star

#12

Post by yomly »

Really fantastic achievement and a really down to earth take on food - good to see Michelin not adopting a stuffy elitist stance on their awards.

I shudder, however, when I think of the queues to try this tasty goodness. For reference, queues can easily top 90 mins if a hawker stall is locally well reviewed! And just over the sea, the queues for Tim Ho Wan (Michelin star dim sum in Hong Kong) are also already oppressively long (1-2 queues). Bookings are non-existent (it's a street stall after all).

Re: Street food chef's stall becomes world's first to earn Michelin star

#13

Post by twoodfin »

xorgar831 wrote: post #6

I thought Michelin stars were about the whole restaurant experience, and especially the consistency. That's interesting they said it was just about the food in the video, that really opens up the award to a more contemporary foodie audience, which is interested in where to get the most delicious X, which is rarely even expensive.

At least nominally this is not true: Michelin claims that stars are only earned based on the quality of the cuisine, not the comfort or service of the establishment.

Now, Michelin "inspectors" are human and certainly still susceptible to our usual cognitive biases, like food tasting "better" if it's eaten with a vermeil fork. And the economics of the restaurant industry make it difficult to profitably produce the kind of meal that earns Michelin stars without charging so much that your customers will demand a certain level of ambiance and service.

It will be interesting to see if this is a one-off for the Guide, or represents the start of a shift away from the dominance of 7+ course, white tablecloth places.

Re: Street food chef's stall becomes world's first to earn Michelin star

#14

Post by CrackpotGonzo »

yomly wrote: post #12

Really fantastic achievement and a really down to earth take on food - good to see Michelin not adopting a stuffy elitist stance on their awards. I shudder, however, when I think of the queues to try this tasty goodness. For reference, queues can easily top 90 mins if a hawker stall is locally well reviewed! And just over the sea, the queues for Tim Ho Wan (Michelin star dim sum in Hong Kong) are also already oppress…

Secret to Tim Ho Wan is to get there before rush times! Went at like 4:30 for an early dinner and had no wait. Amazing.

Re: Street food chef's stall becomes world's first to earn Michelin star

#15

Post by klausa »

fatjokes wrote: post #7
avar wrote: post #4

The article doesn't make this obvious, but the Michelin Guide just expanded into Singapore this year. Singapore has some amazing food, and the hawker stalls are no exception. If anything they exceed far fancier restaurants with their focus and authenticity. But as far as this being news or worthy of HN goes, this just seems like shameless corporate propaganda, even the video accompanying the article is entirely produ…

Suggestions for delicious street food in Europe? I travel to Europe pretty often and consider myself quite the glutton but have yet to experience good street food (great restaurants, yes, but not street food).

Berlin has something called "Thai Park", which happens on summer weeekends.

It is, as far as I know, the best Thai food west of Thailand.

Re: Street food chef's stall becomes world's first to earn Michelin star

#16

Post by beachstartup »

xorgar831 wrote: post #6

I thought Michelin stars were about the whole restaurant experience, and especially the consistency. That's interesting they said it was just about the food in the video, that really opens up the award to a more contemporary foodie audience, which is interested in where to get the most delicious X, which is rarely even expensive.

> and especially the consistency

what about a hawker stall would prevent the achievement of consistent results?

to me, in a smaller area there are fewer variables to control, ensuring a more consistent level of quality.

Re: Street food chef's stall becomes world's first to earn Michelin star

#17

Post by sandworm101 »

Does the star go to the chef or to the stall? I always thought it was awarded to the restaurant rather than a particular member of staff. That would seem to preclude such small venues where the quality of food is so tied to the chef on duty at the time. This guy is always there, but the principal remains.

Fyi, from what I've heard about getting your 'first' star is that there is then a not-fun obligation to try and keep it. I hope this guy handles the pressure well.

Re: Street food chef's stall becomes world's first to earn Michelin star

#18

Post by klausa »

CrackpotGonzo wrote: post #14
yomly wrote: post #12

Really fantastic achievement and a really down to earth take on food - good to see Michelin not adopting a stuffy elitist stance on their awards. I shudder, however, when I think of the queues to try this tasty goodness. For reference, queues can easily top 90 mins if a hawker stall is locally well reviewed! And just over the sea, the queues for Tim Ho Wan (Michelin star dim sum in Hong Kong) are also already oppress…

Secret to Tim Ho Wan is to get there before rush times! Went at like 4:30 for an early dinner and had no wait. Amazing.

According to my Photos.app timestamps I went at 5:30PM and there were no lines at all, too.

I actually didn't came out that impressed - sure, the BBQ Pork Buns definitely lived up to their reputation and are worth the trip alone, but the rest of the menu was kind of a disappointment.

I did spend the previous week in Bangkok though, eating almost everything in sight, so my heightened expectations might have had something to do with my impressions.

Re: Street food chef's stall becomes world's first to earn Michelin star

#19

Post by beachstartup »

avar wrote: post #4

The article doesn't make this obvious, but the Michelin Guide just expanded into Singapore this year. Singapore has some amazing food, and the hawker stalls are no exception. If anything they exceed far fancier restaurants with their focus and authenticity. But as far as this being news or worthy of HN goes, this just seems like shameless corporate propaganda, even the video accompanying the article is entirely produ…

this is just my opinion, but i don't think this is literally 'street food' -- it's not on the street, it's in a food court inside of a shopping mall frequented by affluent professionals.

in my experience, east and southeast asia have the best 'food court' cuisine on earth, probably by an order of magnitude. nothing i've seen on any other continent even comes close. i think this is just michelin recognizing that fact.

Re: Street food chef's stall becomes world's first to earn Michelin star

#20

Post by yomly »

klausa wrote: post #18
CrackpotGonzo wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Secret to Tim Ho Wan is to get there before rush times! Went at like 4:30 for an early dinner and had no wait. Amazing.

According to my Photos.app timestamps I went at 5:30PM and there were no lines at all, too. I actually didn't came out that impressed - sure, the BBQ Pork Buns definitely lived up to their reputation and are worth the trip alone, but the rest of the menu was kind of a disappointment. I did spend the previous week in Bangkok though, eating almost everything in sight, so my heightened expectations might have had someth…

Agree it's more about the individual dishes rather than the entire menu, but their prawn dumplings (har gau) are also spot on.
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