The characteristics of Michelin-starred restaurants in Mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan

Destination Restaurants’ Practices and the Production of Locality: The Case of Michelin Restaurants in China

“…The restaurant represented by R10 explained that the restaurant’s name and philosophy were derived from the name of a local river, making it more traceable and rooted in the region. Similar findings were also identified in previous research on restaurants [ 26 , 90 , 128 ].…”

“…The chef’s mastery of frying techniques significantly influences their reputation within the restaurant industry and adds to the restaurant’s prestige. This restaurant features an open kitchen where chefs demonstrate to customers how the dishes are fried, as a “front-of-house Chinese cuisine.” The restaurant represented by R3 refers to their culinary craftsmanship of the “oil-blasted shrimp” as an intangible cultural heritage, which cooks local river shrimp within 18 s. In return, presenting these traditional cooking techniques is also crucial for conserving the associated local knowledge [ 26 , 39 , 127 ].…”

“…Under the influence of globalisation, non-Chinese food cultures have also had profound impacts on traditional Chinese cuisine during the past century by introducing global fine-dining restaurant brands [ 28 ]. Considering the large consumer market and culinary culture, restaurants in China have begun to attract worldwide attention from the restaurant, hospitality, and tourism industry and have increasingly become incorporated into global assessments of culinary quality [ 26 ]. As an emerging food destination, food tourism and destination restaurants in Mainland China are worthy of attention since the current movement and direction of food tourism may have different implications to those in established food destinations, for example, Singapore [ 92 ], Thailand [ 93 ], Japan [ 94 ], Korea [ 95 ], Malaysia [ 96 ], Indonesia [ 84 ], and Vietnam [ 45 ].…”

“…Expanding the focus on the meal producer and consumer, the menu could further be understood within the wider context of tourism and food systems [ 2 ]. An informative menu with food details could also indicate traditional food practices and culinary heritage and elements of the food supply chain to customers, such as local ingredients and traditional cooking techniques [ 26 , 33 ]. While food with a local origin is crucial in menu design, chefs acknowledged the difficulty of building seasonal and sustainable supply chains and the impact of global influences on the restaurant experiences [ 47 ].…”

“…To do this, the research objectives are twofold: (1) to identify what restaurant's practices have potential to represent locality; (2) to explore how these restaurant's practices could promote local place. The focus of this study is on Michelin restaurants in China, which could be recognised as the most high-profile restaurants in China considering the global visibility of the Michelin Guide [26]. Meanwhile, the unique history, background, architecture, and culture outlooks of China also nurture distinguished culinary cultures and become a strong justification for the preservation of the locality [27,28].…”