Thursday, December 1, 2016

Michelin Starred Ramen 2017 (Tsuta and Nakiryu)


蔦 と 鳴龍

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Congratulations to the two ramen shops that received Michelin stars for 2017. Above is Nakiryu, which came out of nowhere. Fantastic shop, and looking back on my review, somewhere that is deserving, but I don't think any of the Tokyo-based ramen nerds expected that. The fact that Nakiryu and Tsuta are both just a short walk from each other in a relatively unknown part of town makes me think that the secret Michelin judges all live in Bunkyu-ku, and these are the bowls they slurp when they don't want to walk far.

It's a conspiracy!

Actually, the master at Nakiryu previously worked at Chabuya, and went on to create high-end MIST, a shop that, back in 2010, I found a bit bland. Well, MIST moved to Hong Kong and was awarded two Michelin stars back in 2011 and 2012, before closing. If anyone knows how to win over the mysterious Michelin judges, it's a previous star holder.

Oh, and Tsuta retained their one star status.

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My review of Tsuta is here.
My review of Nakiryu is here.





Of course, many shops were given a bib gourmand status. See the entire list here.