7 restaurants in Singapore win first Michelin star; Hill Street Tai Hwa Pork Noodle is only hawker stall left on list

SINGAPORE - Seven restaurants were awarded their first Michelin star on Tuesday evening (July 12), and the Republic added two restaurants to its list of two-starred establishments in the restaurant guide.

The new two-star establishments are Cloudstreet in Amoy Street, helmed by chef Rishi Naleendra; and Thevar, chef Mano Thevar's modern Indian restaurant in Keong Saik Road.

The newly minted one-star restaurants are Euphoria and Hamamoto in Tras Street, La Dame de Pic at the Raffles Hotel, Marguerite at Gardens By The Bay, Nae:um in Telok Ayer and Reve in Kreta Ayer Road. Burnt Ends, which relocated to Dempsey, was also in the new one-star list.

Les Amis at Shaw Centre, Odette at the National Gallery and Zen in Bukit Pasoh kept their three stars.

Dropping off the list of one-starred restaurants are Corner House, Garibaldi and Shinji by Kanesaka at The St Regis.

Two restaurants, Esora and Shang Palace, retained their one-star status despite having new chefs. Hill Street Tai Hwa Pork Noodle is the only hawker stall left on the Michelin list.

Some 450 people in the food and beverage industry attended the ceremony, the first in-person one since the Covid-19 pandemic hit.

Last year's list of starred restaurants was revealed online, and the guide was on hiatus in 2020.

At the event at Marina Bay Sands, where the sixth edition of the Michelin Guide Singapore was launched, guests sat down to a six-course dinner headlined by chefs Tetsuya Wakuda of two-Michelin-starred Waku Ghin at the resort and Tristin Farmer of three-Michelin-starred Zen.

They were joined by four Singaporean chefs working abroad: chefs Barry Quek of one-starred Whey in Hong Kong; Angela Lai of two-starred Tairroir in Taipei; Mathew Leong of two-starred Re-Naa in Norway; and Jimmy Lim of two-starred JL Studio in Taichung, Taiwan.

Chef Mano Thevar, 32, said of his restaurant's second star: "Let's see how far we can push the boundaries. But at the end of the day, the food has to be tasty. That is key."

Singaporean chef Jason Tan, 39, whose Euphoria opened in 2020, said: "It's a young team, and the star gives their morale a boost. We will push to do greater things."

The surprise inclusion on the one-star list is Reve, a Japanese-French restaurant which opened in October last year.

Its chef, Mr Masahiko Kawano, 38, said: "Our restaurant has been opened for less than a year. I'm very happy."

Mr Michael Wilson, 36, the Australian chef-owner of Marguerite, which opened in November last year at Gardens by the Bay, said: "To have earned this recognition within eight months of opening is an incredible feeling. But knowing how much this means to my team is indescribable.

"This achievement is testament to all their hard work and commitment to their craft and I couldn't be more proud of them."

Korean chef Louis Han, 31, of Nae:um, won big - the restaurant garnered its first star and he won the Young Chef award.

"Ever since I was young, it has been my dream to receive a Michelin star," he said."Today, I achieved my lifelong dream. We will continue to stay hungry and humble."

The full list

Three stars

• Les Amis
• Odette
• Zen

Two stars

• Cloudstreet (new)
• Jaan by Kirk Westaway
• Saint Pierre
• Shisen Hanten
• Shoukouwa
• Thevar (new)
• Waku Ghin

One star

• 28 Wilkie
• Alma by Juan Amador
• Art
• Basque Kitchen by Aitor
• Beni
• Braci
• Buona Terra
• Burnt Ends (new)
• Candlenut
• Chef Kang's
• Cure
• Cut
• Esora
• Euphoria (new)
• Hamamoto (new)
• Hill Street Tai Hwa Pork Noodle
• Iggy's
• Imperial Treasure Fine Teochew Cuisine
• Restaurant JAG
• Labyrinth
• La Dame de Pic (new)
• Lei Garden
• Lerouy
• Ma Cuisine
• Marguerite (new)
• Meta
• Nae:um (new)
• Nouri
• Oshino
• Putien at Kitchener Road
• Reve (new)
• Rhubarb
• Shang Palace
• Shinji by Kanesaka at Carlton Hotel Singapore
• Sommer
• Summer Palace
• Summer Pavilion
• Sushi Ichi
• Sushi Kimura
• Table65
• Terra
• Whitegrass

ALSO READ: Attention foodies: 9 new restaurants and hawker stalls make Michelin Bib Gourmand 2022 list

This article was first published in The Straits Times. Permission required for reproduction.