If you were as riveted by “The Bear” as I was, you have an idea what a restaurant is willing to go through for even a single shiny star. When the Michelin Guide came to Tokyo for the first time in 2008, they planned to honor a number of restaurants with multiple star ratings, so imagine how shocked they were to be greeted at the door by chefs with their arms crossed, refusing them entry.
“No reporters, no cameras, no Michelin stars,” they were told, in no uncertain terms. And to this day, they haven’t budged.
But why?
For one thing, Michelin stars would fill their reservation books for months in advance, stretch the line of would-be customers around the block all day, every day, and attract discerning eaters from every corner of the globe. Which is the last thing in the world most Japanese restaurants want.
The practical reason is that sudden fame means their loyal local regulars won’t be able to get a table, and when the fickle culinary tourists run off to chase the next hot chef, they may be left with no business.
But there’s a deeper reason too: Refusing Michelin stars is also about being satisfied with enough.
Not “everything I always wanted” or “more than I ever dreamed.” “Enough” isn’t about success. It’s about knowing what you want, and being satisfied when you get it.
And like many things in Japan, providing a service—or knowledge—is a two-way street. Paying in money is only the ante to be allowed in the door. Because the ultimate goal of many Japanese chefs isn’t fame, fortune, or a franchise in every major city of the world. It’s to innovate food for customers who put as much into their appreciation of the chef’s art as the chef puts into the food. That’s why you’ll never see photos from many top Japanese restaurants on Instagram or anywhere else. They operate more like private clubs, and you’re only allowed to eat there if you’re the guest of an established customer or introduced by one.
And that’s the kind of relationship no Michelin star can buy.
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Jonelle Patrick writes novels set in Japan, and blogs at Only In Japan and The Tokyo Guide I Wish I’d Had
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