#14: The Hag's first rebuttal 👀
I interrupt our regularly scheduled programming with a rant
I know I got your hopes up for a full review of Restaurant Constance and I did eat there last week, so I can assure you it’s on the way. But this morning I have some other business to attend to, regarding an opinion piece that was published last week by The Charlotte Observer.
The piece, written by food writer Timothy DePeugh, was titled, “Dear Michelin Guide, don’t come here to Charlotte. Not yet, anyway.”
For context, Michelin announced last week via press release that they would be debuting the Michelin Guide American South. They’ll be sending out “anonymous inspectors” (aka food spies) to six southern states, including North Carolina. These spies will ultimately decide which restaurants will be included in the 2025 guide and who may be awarded a coveted Michelin star.
This is a pretty big deal.
It means restaurants from Asheville, Raleigh, Charlotte and other NC cities could be contenders.
I was naturally interested in hearing the argument for why the puffy Michelin Man should stay out of our city, so I indulged. I read DePeugh’s whole piece. Then, I read again. Then, I was miffed.
The general argument, it seems, is that Charlotte’s benchmark for exceptional food is relatively low (I agree actually) and, because of this, we only have a handful of restaurants that could even be considered for a Michelin star. Therefore, it would do our city a “disservice” to have the lovely folks at Michelin come here and try our swill.
DePeugh sets up his argument with his “modest bit of authority,” which includes his resume as a former judge for the World’s 50 Best Restaurants and the fact that he’s “eaten at over 20 3-star restaurants, perhaps twice as many 2-star restaurants, and countless one-star restaurants.“
He predicts that there are only two restaurants that could perhaps pull off a star (L’Ostrica or Omakase Experience by Prime Fish) and that Charlotte “eking out one star in a regional American South guide” would be “embarrassing” or seemingly degrade the entire Michelin enterprise altogether.
He assures the reader that he wants Charlotte’s restaurants to succeed, of course. But that now just isn’t the right time.
In the words of Kelly Kapoor, “Yeah I have a lot of questions. Number one, how dare you?”
Whose side are you on exactly? It seems that you’re more concerned about Michelin maintaining the integrity of their mysterious and important star system than you are about elevating Charlotte restaurants that are doing incredible work. Would it not be a massive win for our entire city to have even one Michelin star restaurant? Would it not, at the very least, be absolutely game changing for that one restaurant?
I’d also like to reiterate that this is a regional guide for six whole ass states. This isn’t even a guide for all of North Carolina. Charlotte would be among cities like Charleston, New Orleans, and Atlanta. I fail to see how having one restaurant included would be a “disservice”. If anything, it would be a huge accomplishment for a local chef and their hardworking team.
I agree with DePeugh that Charlotte is not a world-class culinary city. We’re a city filled with people who, frankly, don’t have great taste. I’m sorry but it’s true. Most Charlotteans’ idea of a mind-blowing meal out is indulging in the Truffle Mac & Cheese at The Cellar at Duckworths. And these same people would call it a speakeasy without irony.
I’d love to see our collective palate grow up a bit, but at the same time, there are some restaurants in our city that deserve real recognition.
According to Michelin, their grading criteria is:
1) quality products
2) harmony of flavors
3) mastery of cooking techniques
4) voice and personality of the chef as reflected in the cuisine
5) consistency between each visit and throughout the menu (each restaurant is inspected several times a year).
If that’s all we’re judging, then Charlotte hands down has contenders. I have a suspicion though, based on DePeugh’s piece and in scrolling through the restaurants knighted with a Michelin star, that there’s an unspoken 6th criteria.
DePeugh refers to a rumored secret criteria about restaurants having white tablecloths. I think it seems to be something else. Case in point is when DePeugh uses a Michelin star restaurant in Chicago to illustrate why Charlotte isn’t Michelin-ready. He spends most of the telling of his experience talking about everything but the actual food he ate. He directs our focus at the emotional narrative behind the meal, the whole performance of it.
Additionally, if you take a look at the food from most Michelin star restaurants there’s an undeniable uniformity to the style. It feels very “avant-garde”. This made me wonder of the secret criteria was just that. The food can’t just be fucking great, it needs to be a piece of modern art.
The thing about avant-garde fashion is that it’s impressive and beautiful and probably took an insane amount of craftsmanship to make, but you wouldn’t actually enjoy wearing it. Exceptional cuisine doesn’t need to have a backstory or complex presentation to be impressive or delicious. A single bite can be transporting, even if it looks like shit.
If they really are only judging restaurants by the stated criteria, which is about the food itself, Charlotte deserves a seat at the table. But if restaurants are being judged by something else, then maybe we should be critiquing Michelin’s benchmarking instead. And if they expect restaurants to double as dinner theaters or edible art exhibits, then maybe we should all be asking ourselves, “why the fuck do we care what a tire company thinks?”
I barely have authority to speak on this topic. I have never eaten at a Michelin star restaurant or judged the World’s 50 Best Restaurants. DePeugh and everyone else is welcome to tell me to fuck off. But I do recognize and deeply enjoy truly great food and I don’t think we need to be so goddamn precious about it. I mean isn’t all of this supposed to be…fun?
I know Charlotte has a lot of growing to do but it also already has a collection of chefs that are consistently churning out creative, high-quality, exciting dishes. I don’t need a Michelin food spy to tell me what excellent food is. I’ve felt it myself whenever I’ve sliced into the Korean Beef or twirled the Tagliatelle at Good Food on Montford. I felt it when I tasted a spoonful of Smoked Trout Soup at L’Ostrica and sunk my fork into the Lamb Ragu at Rada. Hell, I felt it when I ate a hot dog and onion rings at JJ’s Red Hots.
I’m happy for DePeugh that he’s had the opportunity to dine at so many Michelin star restaurants around the world but there are bright spots of extraordinary food in this city, too. Charlotte may not be Singapore or Chicago or even Atlanta, but we have restaurants that deserve recognition. I’d like to see them at least have the opportunity to get it.
5 things I consumed this week in Charlotte
Crispy shrimp sandwich ($18) and glass of wine ($18) from Chef’s Market at L’Ostrica. During the day, L’Ostrica has a market menu and this was their sandwich of the day. I barely took a breath while eating it, it was so delicious. The shrimp was crisped to perfection and complemented beautifully by the tangy remoulade. Will be back ASAP to try more sandos.
“Plant balls” ($5.50) from IKEA. The irony isn’t lost on me that I’m writing about Michelin stars when I willingly ate something called “plant balls” last week but I contain multitudes. The meal was expectedly sub-par but yet still delightful.
Meatballs ($15), Jimmy chop salad ($18), crispy brussels sprouts ($15), and a Nonna’s Negroni ($14) from The Jimmy. All split with a dear friend and committed reader of QCH. A very “girl dinner” spread. One of my favorite salads and a fantastic negroni. Also, sorry to the staff that we stayed so late yapping.
Pulled barbeque chicken plate ($13) and a margarita from Midwood Smokehouse. It’s been awhile since I’ve eaten at a Midwood and the quality has really nosedived. The chicken was insanely dry, the broccoli casserole was more like cheese soup, and my margarita was so sweet I didn’t finish it. Best parts of the meal were the hushpuppies and pickles.
Chipotle turkey bacon sandwich ($13) and a glass of wine ($11) at The Loyalist Market. A Matthews spot that’s been on my list to try. The sandwich was fine. There was way too much turkey and the bread was too soft. I’d give it another try but I’d order something else.
Not included in my list was an overpriced plastic cup of terrible wine at AMC Park Terrace 6 while watching the Minecraft movie (a confusing journey). I was shocked (and grateful) that the bar was open because it NEVER is. What’s the deal with that, AMC?
Carefully crafting my review for next week and can’t wait to share it.
c u next tuesday,
the hag herself
All of the food and drinks reviewed in QCH are paid for by the author. This newsletter does not feature any ads or sponsored content.
Wow. I think that Charlotte Observer writer is so far off the mark. Also, the fact that DePeugh didn't include Counter is such a miss that I want to throw my phone on the ground in rage.
DePeugh also entirely missed that restaurants may be included in the Michelin guide and not have a star. Being listed in the guide as "Selected" (without a star) is also a big deal. We've found that restaurants listed but not starred are often more approachable and less fussy. Also, I don't think DePeugh has looked at the list of one star restaurants lately. Many are white tablecloth and tasting menu affairs but many are not - places we have loved that are very approachable (for example, State Bird Provisions, The Four Horseman, Oxcomoco). There are even some BBQ restaurants in Texas with one star!
I agree with you that it's important to acknowledge that Michelin is starting off with the South and covering many states, and Charlotte should not have high expectations. I'm not even sure we'll get a star the first go-to round. We should be excited though. It's great news for the city.