This year's guide features 90 restaurants in Hong Kong and Macau, with plenty of newcomers as well as some notable omissions

The 12th edition of the Michelin Guide for Hong Kong and Macau was unveiled at City of Dreams today (December 17, 2019), with two new three-star restaurants, three new two-star restaurants, and 10 new one-star restaurants. 

Among the newly crowned one-stars were David Thompson's Aaharn, which opened in Tai Kwun late last year. St Regis Hong Kong was also among the big winners of the day, with both restaurants—Rùn and L'Envol among this year's set of newcomers. Shanghainese restaurant Liu Yuan Pavilion earned one star, while French and Japanese restaurants continued to clean up well, with Julien Royer's Louise, The Peninsula's Gaddi's, Ryota Kappou Modern and Zest by Konishi all gaining one star status for 2020. Petrus regained its one star status, even with a mid-year transition that saw previous executive chef Ricardo Chaneton depart to open his own restaurant, Mono, and Uwe Opocensky coming in to officially take over in the autumn. 

Roganic, the triple T.Dining Best Restaurants award winner for 2020, was awarded an easy one star with British chef Simon Rogan in attendance to support his Hong Kong team. Yan Toh Heen, previously awarded two stars, was surprisingly downgraded to one star from 2019. Historic Wan Chai restaurant Fook Lam Moon, which was just this week in the news over a legal matter concerning its alleged insolvency, received a spot of good news with the reinstatement of its one star status. 

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Above Eric Räty of Arbor, which received two stars in the 2020 edition (Photo: Michelin)

Going straight to two stars this year is André Chiang's Sichuan Moon, which also debuted on our Top 20 Best Restaurants list for 2020—Chiang himself joined his head chef Zor Tan on stage to accept the accolade. Among the two star club, we were pleased to see Eric Räty's Arbor—a long time favourite—and Wing Lei at Wynn Macau graduate from one star to two stars. In a surprising turn, chef Tam Kwok-fung's Wing Lei Palace was passed over by the Michelin guide for 2020; once more, we're puzzled by the omission of Yi, Morpheus' fine dining Chinese restaurant, for a second year in a row. Meanwhile Bo Innovation, which has held three star status since 2014, was taken down a notch in this year's edition. 

Finally, the three star list for 2020 was mostly unchanged—with titans Caprice, Jade Dragon, L'Atelier de Joel Robuchon, Lung King Heen, 8 1/2 Otto e Mezzo Bombana, Robuchon Au Dome, T'ang Court and The Eight retaining their top titles. Forum restaurant, a two-star last year, gained its third star this year—known for its classic Cantonese dishes (especially abalone), it's a stalwart on the scene that certainly seems to have impressed the Michelin inspectors. The final announcement of the day was Sushi Shikon, which gained three stars in the 2019 edition already but was oddly announced as a "new addition", purely down to the fact that it moved locations earlier this year. 

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Above Antimo Maria Merone and Umberto Bombana of 8 1/2 Otto e Mezzo Bombana Macau and Hong Kong (Photo: Michelin)

While we congratulate all of the starred restaurants, we're still raising some eyebrows over some clear omissions from the guide. Local champion The Chairman, which has gone from strength to strength over the last few years—gaining the respect of diners and the industry—is curiously absent despite stellar cooking and point of view. The same can be said of Haku, helmed by Agustin Balbi, which we have seen evolve dramatically in the past 18 months, that serves highly accomplished dishes that nails Michelin's criteria of showcasing "the personality of the chef in their cuisine". Barry Quek's Beet, which is consistently stellar (thus its two-year streak in our Top 20 Best Restaurants list) is equally deserving of at least one star; ditto David Lai's Neighborhood, which continues to surprise and delight over the years. While no lists are perfect, it does provide plenty of fodder for many dinner conversations to come.

The full list of stars is below for reference (those with an asterisk are new additions): 

One Michelin Star

Aaharn *
Ah Yat Harbour View
Arcane
Beefbar
Belon 
Celebrity Cuisine
Duddell’s
Epure
Fook Lam Moon (Wan Chai) *
Fu Ho (TST)
Gaddi's *
Guo Fu Lou 
Ho Hung Kee
IM Teppanyaki & Wine
Imperial Treasure
Jardin de Jade (Wan Chai)
Kaiseki Den by Saotome
Kam’s Roast Goose
King
Lai Heen
Lei Garden (Kwun Tong)
Lei Garden (Mongkok)
L'Envol *
Liu Yan Pavilion *
Loaf On
Louise *
Man Wah
Mandarin Grill + Bar
Ming Court
New Punjab Club
Octavium
Otto e Mezzo Macau
Pang’s Kitchen
Pearl Dragon
Petrus *
Rech
Roganic
Rùn *
Ryota Kappou Modern *
Shang Palace
Shinji by Kanesaka
Spring Moon
Summer Palace
Sushi Wadatsumi
Takumi by Daisuke Mori
Tate
The Golden Peacock
The Kitchen
Tim Ho Wan (Sham Shui Po)
Tim’s Kitchen
Tosca di Angelo
VEA
Wing Lei
Xin Rong Ji 
Yan Toh Heen (down from 2*)
Yat Lok
Yat Tung Heen (Jordan)
Yè Shanghai (TST)
Ying
Zest by Konishi *
Zhejiang Heen
Zi Yat Heen

Two Michelin Stars

Alain Ducasse At Morpheus 
Amber
Arbor (up from 1*)
Bo Innovation (down from 3*)
Écriture
Feng Wei Ju
Golden Flower
Kashiwaya
Mizumi (Wynn Macau)
Pierre
Sichuan Moon *
Sun Tung Lok
Sushi Saito 
Ta Vie
Tenku Ryugin
The Tasting Room
Tin Lung Heen
Ying Jee Club
Wing Lei (up from 1*)

Three Michelin Stars 

Caprice 
Jade Dragon 
Forum (up from 2*)
L’Atelier de Joël Robuchon
Lung King Heen
8 1/2 Otto e Mezzo Bombana (HK)
Robuchon au Dôme
Sushi Shikon
Tang Court
The Eight

See also: The Top 20 Best Restaurants in Hong Kong And Macau

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