World-famous street restaurant loses Michelin star
The famous street restaurant Hawker Chan in Singapore has lost its Michelin star. In the first edition of the Asian Michelin Guide, this restaurant was a notable mention, because it was the cheapest restaurant in the world with a star. For the equivalent of just over one and a half euros, you could eat the award-winning soy sauce chicken with noodles prepared by chef Chan Hong Meng.
Hawker Chan was a household name: for just 2.50 Singapore dollars, you could eat those famous soy sauce noodles with chicken here. And Chan makes the soy sauce himself, according to a secret recipe. Long queues formed at Chan’s stall every day.
In the new edition of the Asian Michelin Guide, published on September 1, Chan Hong Meng’s restaurant was no longer listed among the restaurants with a star. After Chan won a star, his career took off like a rocket. He opened new restaurants, with branches in the Philippines and Thailand. In addition to the chicken with noodles, other dishes were added to the menu.
Delicious and affordable
CNN asked the chef what he thought about losing the star. ‘Our recipe has not changed since 2009. We don’t understand why Michelin withdrew the star. But we respect everyone’s opinion about food. We’ll simply continue making delicious and affordable meals, because that’s what we do it for.’
Principles
Jealous voices can be heard in the gossip circuit. Chan is said to have cashed in handsomely on that star and consequently forgotten where he came from. ‘It’s good that Michelin is sticking to its principles,’ says culinary expert KF Seetoh. ‘That way, the star rating retains its value.’ Chan is not accepting it without a fight. ‘We’ll do our best to earn that star again next year,’ he says.
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Source: CNN Travel
