The inaugural Michelin Guide Taipei was unveiled March 14, with one local restaurant receiving the coveted three stars, two establishments earning two stars and 17 eateries landing one star.
Highlighting Taiwan’s culinary diversity and creative excellence, the 20 Michelin-starred restaurants offer a wide selection of cuisines including Cantonese, French, Japanese and Taiwanese.
Speaking at the unveiling ceremony, Michelin Guide International Director Michael Ellis praised Taiwan for its strong food culture, describing the local fare as delicious, dynamic, vibrant and of incredible quality. The nation’s restaurants combine influences from Asia and Europe to create truly unique cuisine, he said.
With the launch of the first Michelin Guide for Taipei, the country can step into the global culinary limelight, he said. “Taiwan will now take its rightful place on the playing field of international gastronomy and be compared to France, Japan, Italy and other great dining destinations around the world,” he added.
Le Palais, located at the Palais de Chine Hotel, was the only establishment in the guide to join the prestigious club of three-star restaurants, which number just over 100 globally. Michelin recommended Le Palais’ signature Cantonese dishes such as crispy roasted duck and baked egg custard tarts.
Two stars were awarded to The Guest House at the Sheraton Grand Taipei Hotel and RyuGin, located in Zhongshan District. The former offers Hunan and Sichuan dishes served with a tasteful Taiwanese twist, while the latter delivers creative, modern Japanese flare using top-quality local ingredients, according to the guide.
Taiwanese cuisine represented in the one-star category includes Golden Formosa and Ming Fu, both offering quintessential classics such as “Buddha jumps over the wall”—a rich chicken soup filled to the brim with gourmet ingredients creating a complex array of flavors.
Other one-star establishments include Taiwan-influenced Cantonese restaurant Three Coins, charcoal barbecue grill Da-Wan, Hangzhou classic cuisine Tien Hsiang Lo, French contemporary restaurants L’Atelier de Joel Robuchon and La Cocotte by Fabien Verge, and Sushi bars Kitcho, Sushi Nomura and Sushi Ryu.
A total of 110 local establishments were recommended in the Michelin Guide Taipei 2018, including 36 eateries in the Bib Gourmand selection. The publication is famous for awarding one to three stars in recognition of “high-quality cooking, worth a stop,” “excellent cooking, worth a detour” and “exceptional cuisine, worth a special journey,” in that order. (KWS-E)
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