Michelin's Underwhelming Announcement

The Michelin Guide Vancouver is in its second year

There was barely any excitement in the days leading up to the second year of the Michelin Guide in Vancouver. So was it surprising that only one -- yes just one -- new restaurant was added to the other eight one-star establishments?

Tonight's announcement was held at the Fairmont Pacific Rim's ballroom, not the massive Convention Centre, and only about a dozen seats reserved in front of the stage.

Okeya Kyujiro is the ninth one-star restaurant

A few industry people I talked to before the event started assumed there would be more stars handed out, but no, they were completely wrong.

So the coveted star was handed to a Japanese omakase restaurant called Okeya Kyujiro in Yaletown that opened last September. It has another location in Montreal that opened three years ago. It was nice to see the two chefs and server dressed in traditional Japanese attire and fitting that they also won the Michelin Outstanding Service award.

And there was a new prize handed out -- Michelin Young Chef Award -- which went to Warren Chow of Wildlight Kitchen + Bar, a place I visited a week ago and quite enjoyed the lunch. Service was better than the first time I went, but then again the place was barely half full.

Chow was thrilled to win the award -- he said he had no idea beforehand and was shaking with excitement. He just turned 31 years old yesterday so this Michelin nod is quite the birthday present.

And then that was the end of the awards ceremony. 

Warren Chow Best Young Chef

Before the big announcement of the ninth one-star restaurant, every other chef, restaurateur, sommelier, manager and so on were on stage to get their two minutes' of fame. Emcee Mijune Pak asked not only last year's one-star restaurants to come up, but also the Bib Gourmands and the Recommended Restaurants. All 77 of them were up on stage at one point or another.

Perhaps it was done so that they got some attention, but for the media it was hardly newsworthy.

Even international director of the Michelin Guide Gwendal Poullennec didn't show up. Apparently he's too busy launching guides at the moment to return to cities for the second year...

So what's next for 2024? 

One more one-star restaurant?

The Michelin Guide has puts itself in a pickle. Vancouver has great restaurants, but are they really Michelin-starred restaurants? Now there are nine one-star restaurants. Of those are any worthy of being elevated to two stars?