Two more Montreal restaurants given Michelin star rating

Montreal keeps adding to its culinary accolades.

Two more restaurants in the city have received a Michelin star after the renowned guide updated its Quebec edition on Wednesday.

“Very diverse, very interesting cuisine, very, a lot of experimental stuff,” said one Montrealer.

Another saying, “It’s completely different if you go in each district, you have a different vibe, mood, etc. So, maybe if you want to eat something very special, you can go to this district, maybe, so it can change a lot.”

Sushi Nishinokaze on Saint-Laurent Boulevard and Hoogan et Beaufort on Molson Street have been added to Michelin’s list of one-star restaurants.

“The stars in this city mean validation that we are a culinary powerhouse,” said Justin Gilman, a food blogger with Food Guy MTL. “There’s very careful attention to detail here in every single step from the rice to the plate to the seat that you’re sitting on, to the atmosphere that you’re dining in. That is a place that really deserves to be there because of the quality of the food, the atmosphere, and the experience. There’s nothing like that in the city, that’s for sure.”

Montreal now has five one-star Michelin restaurants after Jérôme Ferrer-Europea, Mastard, and Sabayon made the list in the inaugural edition last year. Those three restaurants maintained their star rating.

READ: 9 restaurants earn Michelin stars in the inaugural Quebec guide

Nishinokaze, which means “West Wind” in Japanese, is a fine dining sushi counter by Japanese chef Vincent Gee. The fish is mostly sourced from Japan, and careful attention is paid to the rice.

“Skillful curing and marinating demonstrate confident technique, enhancing an experience centered on the inherent quality of the ingredients: dazzlingly fresh Nova Scotia shrimp, precisely prepared bluefin tuna, and precisely vinegared kohada with an intense umami flavour,” reads the Michelin guide entry for the restaurant.

The intimate eight-seat restaurant — described as an omakase experience — was recently named the 31st-best restaurant in Canada and the country’s fifth-best new restaurant by “Canada’s 100 Best.”

Hoogan et Beaufort, described as modern cuisine, is from chef and co-owner Marc-André Jetté.

“I broke down in tears for my team—it just hit me all at once. It was an incredible moment, especially since we really were not expecting to receive a star today,” said Jetté.

Mila Rishkova, a co-owner of Hoogan et Beaufort, added, “We’ve already seen a change in reservations. It’s been one hell of a job that our director of restaurants has been managing all day, making sure that we don’t go crazy overboard and we just handle the flow and deliver with grace and not get overly excited. But we’ve seen that change already.”

The Rosemont-La Petite-Patrie restaurant’s specialty is wood-fired cooking and a wine list curated by sommelier Hugo Duchesne.

“There’s always been this sense that Michelin stars were out of reach for Quebec chefs. But since Michelin arrived and spotlighted the province’s food scene, that started to change—and little by little, we started to believe it was possible,” said Jetté.

Two other Quebec restaurants earned a Michelin star: Auberge Saint-Mathieu in Saint-Mathieu-du-Parc and Le Clan in Quebec City.