Michelin’s Obsession With Omakase: An Analysis

Last night, the ceremony celebrating the second Atlanta Michelin Guide awarded new stars to the city’s restaurants. Four additional restaurants were awarded a star this year: O By Brush, Omakase Table, Spring, and Staplehouse. They join Atlas, Bacchanalia, Hayakawa, Lazy Betty, and Mujo, which were awarded a star last year and have retained it.

Of the nine total one-Michelin-starred restaurants in Atlanta, four of them are sushi omakase places — O By Brush, Omakase Table, Hayakawa, and Mujo. That’s more than a third of the list and may be an ongoing trend for Michelin selections.

Hayakawa

There are nearly 200 Michelin-starred restaurants in the U.S. About 40 of them are classified under “sushi” in the guidebook’s cuisine designations. That means 20 percent of the Michelin-starred restaurants in the country are sushi places. Compare that to Atlanta, where the margin currently sits at about 45 percent. The omakase chefs and restaurants who earned the Michelin star are undoubtedly talented. But when you think of Atlantan cuisine, does omakase come to mind as the main stakeholder? And does that matter to a Michelin distinction — to represent the city’s ethos?

Atlanta is a vastly diverse city with many different cuisines. In fact, throughout the Michelin Guides, 25 different cuisines are represented in Atlanta, which include stars, Bib Gourmands (restaurants with high-quality food at affordable prices), and recommendations (restaurants using quality ingredients that are well cooked; simply a good meal).

In a poll of which restaurants readers thought should win a star, many said Georgia Boy (which received its second recommendation), Foundation Social Eatery, Lucian Books and Wine, and Gunshow (also received its second recommendation), among others. Many also rooted for Mujo and Brush Sushi.

Andrew Thomas Lee

In Atlanta, Omakase is growing in popularity. With the above-listed restaurants making highly refined food, alongside Buckhead staple Umi’s new M by Tasuku Murakami omakase experience (which did not receive a mention), and even Homemakase, an at-home private omakase by chef Alex Candelas, the appetite for luxury Japanese dining is vast.

It’s a cost-effective restaurant model, too. With raw ingredients as the star, there is no need for a full kitchen, a brigade of line cooks, and hours of prep. That lowers the labor and real estate costs, leaving funds for fresh and rare ingredients often shipped from Japan. A hefty price tag per seat at an omakase counter — typically seating about 10 people paying upwards of $250 to $450 each — ensures sustainability and profitability for the restaurant. And Atlanta can use that, especially given how many big restaurants have closed recently.

Michelin awards fine dining, and in recent years, there has been a major shift away from the Guide awarding mostly high-end French restaurants. Represented cuisines are now more diverse, and sushi is one of them. And for the time being, it is the top dog in Atlanta. Per Michelin.