Disappointing, but unsurprising. The head chef in Tokyo who I chatted to for a while in French was actually formerly the head chef of the Paris venue, so I was sort of hoping..

Heading back to Chicago in April and have reservations at:

Blackbird *
Smyth **

That's just for our first day. Trying to decide what other stars we want to hit.

Previous trips have been: Alinea, Oriole, and Omakase Yume,

Acadia (**) is really great, and Boka (*) can also be recommended

I'm torn on Acadia. Have read/heard some lack luster things for the price. We have been eyeing up Boka.

Might do Mako as well.

Boka is a semi-finalist for the James Beard Award for Outstanding Restaurant in the US. Justifyingly so.

The 2020 James Beard Award Semifinalists

I'm from Norway, which may explain why I didn't bat an eyelash over the price
Acadia also serves food in their bar, which may be a good way to sample what the kitchen can offer, without springing for a full tasting menu.

Sounds like you have a great trip coming up! Enjoy!

Ah I forgot they have a bar. Might have to go there now. Thanks!

Most recent Michelin experience was at Odo (new 1-star Japanese kaiseki) in NYC. Very good food on balance, although the sushi course was somewhat time-consuming and a clear notch below what I would have expected. The sommelier / sake specialist was one of the best I have encountered in NYC.

I�ve been to nearly every 2* and 3* in NYC, and roughly 1/3 of the 1*s. My favorite of the moment is the Hinoki Counter at Sushi Noz. I�m almost reluctant to say so given that it is already getting quite difficult to book. The last couple times my wife and I were there, the other 6 people at the counter were all from Japan (Tokyo, Kyoto, and Sapporo), and all said it would be among the best back home. The menu is $325; with premium pairing and up sells we�ve paid around $1300 each time. Well worth it.

Sushi Noz is objectively great but Chef Abe is a purveyor of the warm rice style, which will not be to everyone's liking (personally, I just don't get the same umami out of warm rice nigiri). I did think his tsumami was excellent and likely worth the price of admission alone.

Subjective opinion of warm rice aside, I would be inclined to agree Sushi Noz is among the best in NYC. I would certainly not rate it among the best in Tokyo.

Fair enough - I�ve never managed to get into any of the top places in Tokyo, just reporting what I was told by fellow patrons.

Probably the best I�ve had in Tokyo is Sushi Iwa, which I totally understand doesn�t rate among the city�s elite. I�ve had much better luck booking kaiseki, tempura, and French restaurants over there.

Had Carbone for lunch today (via delivery). The rigatoni alla vodka is still amazing, even in a takeout container. The veal parm I was a little less impressed with - good but not great.

Been to a few starred restaurants in SIN lately before the lockdown:

Candlenut (*)
Classic perenakan cuisine. The flavours are good but portions are small. The curries are spectacular.

Garibaldi (*)
Classic Italian fare with a really comprehensive wine list. Tignanellos, Solaias and Sassicaias from eons ago in the cellar. Classic dish is the angel hair pasta which is silky and savoury at the same time. Can't go wrong with its classic flavours.

Corner House (*) (before the chef change)
French-Singaporean Gastrobotanical cuisine when Chef Jason was in the house. The cuisine was refined yet contemporary. Special dish was the onion. Interesting wine list with a Paulliac de Latour by the glass.

Ma Cuisine (*)
You need to order some wine before the food menu is brought to you. But that said, the wine prices aren't that cut-throat compared to other places in singapore. Food is rich and delicious, quality is tops, especially that pigeon main course I had. However value for money for food is another question altogether.

Zen (**)
Wow. Breathtaking. Nordic cuisine with asian influence is simply one of the best combinations out there. The alcoholic pairing was good but it didn't translate the food to me and i was confused. The non-alcoholic pairing was done with all sorts of kombucha and that was interesting. They also had this furnace wine opener like the one in Geranium that was so cool too! Signature was their French Toast which was shaved on with an overwhelming amount of truffles.

Odette (***)
Wow this is classic french. Compared to the previous visit which was 2 years ago, the standard for wine pairing has completely risen. Techniques used to create the gastronomic masterpieces were too beautiful to be eaten. Their Oh Joy (Wine list) had all sorts of rarities that were available by the glass. Totally delicious.


Special disclaimer: I work for JAAN by Kirk Westaway (*) so some experiences may be skewed due to being in industry.

I visited Odette for dinner end 2018 when it was 2* and I enjoyed it a lot, I recall a pretty spectacular pigeon dish. It was pretty refined and accurate cooking but enough guts to use some bold flavour combinations. I'd also recommend Les Amis in Singapore if you enjoyed Odette, French and more classical in technique. It also snagged a third star at the same time as Odette, there was a potato caviar starter, a lobster and a lamb dish all were dazzlingly good. The lamb was accompanied by some carrots which were hands down the best cooked carrots I've ever eaten. They also have some talent in the pastry section, everything I ate out of there was as good as I've had at the end of a posh meal. I also enjoyed Burnt Ends in Singapore, they take one thing, cooking meat over fire, and do it very well. More casual (except the pricing) and lots of fun if you sit at the counter. Zen sounds good I'd love to give it a go once we've sorted out the whole global pandemic thing.

Just got an email that Chef's Table at Brooklyn Fare is going to start takeout/delivery this Tuesday. What does 3-star Michelin takeout taste like?? I might try it once, presuming the price point is within reason...