The fact that we are starting to have our first Michelin-starred restaurants is a big boost on an international level. Michelin-starred restaurants will see a 15%-20% increase in traffic, and possibly even a few hundred percent, in the first weeks of being listed. There is also a customer base in the world that follows the Michelin list to enjoy the best food in the world. The Michelin list has a great appeal to diners and is also the highest recognition for chefs.
Vietnamese cuisine is making its mark in many countries around the world. More and more Vietnamese restaurants are appearing in the most luxurious cities. The father of modern marketing, professor Phillip Kotler, once suggested that Vietnam should position itself as the "Kitchen of the world"... And this is a brilliant suggestion. However, we have not taken full advantage of this advantage. For thousands of years, eating and drinking has always been an activity that connects people in a very natural way. It is a symbol of togetherness, of peace and unity.
Cuisine is a soft but powerful power that can effectively introduce the image of Vietnam to the world. A pot of fragrant tea with the scent of West Lake lotus, a bowl of sweet soup in a narrow alley in Hue, a hot loaf of bread warming the heart on a hurried morning in Ho Chi Minh City. People can be expressed through cuisine in many aspects, from sophisticated to simple, from luxurious to intimate.
If used wisely, cuisine is a great introduction to the most familiar things of Vietnam to the world. The world’s most powerful billionaires come to Vietnam, they can eat million-dollar dishes but they still choose to sit at a sidewalk pho restaurant because of the cultural environment that radiates around that seemingly chaotic space. The world’s most powerful leaders when coming to Vietnam choose to eat the dishes that ordinary people have been eating since the subsidy period… They want to enjoy the whole history compressed in that piece of bun cha.
When Michelin ranked the first 4 Vietnamese restaurants with stars and 103 more restaurants were included in the shortlist, there was a lot of controversy… Many people thought that Michelin did not "understand" Vietnamese cuisine, the restaurants on the list were "normal" and many other excellent restaurants deserved to be on the list but were not seen.
Personally, of course I regret it! I regret that Vietnamese cuisine is so rich and beautiful but so few names are included in the Michelin list. Because there are dishes that are not just dishes, but also the space of that dish, like eating Com Lang Vong in the golden autumn weather of Thang Long, or a piece of grilled spring rolls under the drizzle while watching Trang Tien Bridge... There are many dishes that are no longer simply dishes, they have become the memories of many generations, the beauty of time and become the symbol of an entire region.
However, when Michelin ranks, we should respect them and their standards. Although it is regrettable and there are many things we disagree with Michelin's list, looking further, the controversy proves that people really care and the appeal of cuisine is very great.
The author of the article at a Michelin-starred restaurant in Vietnam
For me personally, a person who has worked in the tourism industry for a long time, enjoyed many different cuisines and is currently doing business in this field, Vietnamese cuisine is as diverse and profound as any cuisine in the world. In particular, Vietnamese cuisine is also very healthy, not too greasy like Chinese food, not too spicy like Thai food, Indian food, not too fatty like European food, American food and this is what makes Vietnamese cuisine follow the world's healthy consumption trend.
I believe that this is the first year, so Michelin analysts have only experienced a small part of Vietnamese cuisine. So let's wait until the following years, we will see more Michelin stars appear so that Vietnam can truly affirm itself as the "Kitchen of the World".
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