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Comment by runako | Hacker News Reader

> The runner up, USA, has 15 restaurants with twice the population.

I believe I read that Michelin doesn't really evaluate most of the USA as part of its starring guide. For example, this [1] indicates that LA is not in the coverage area for the Michelin star system. Smaller cities like Miami, Atlanta, Houston, Dallas, Las Vegas, etc. are therefore invisible despite having tons of people in aggregate. (Apparently the size of geographic regions and cost are factors.)

Would be interesting to see the US ratio compared with population in the cities actually covered here.

1 - https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/food/wp/2016/06/01/did-t...

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It doesn't. This has been an issue in Minneapolis, one of the best food scenes in the country. We've had restaurants that could legitimately compete for Michelin stars, but not a lot of interest in them coming here to look.

I know of at least one place in Minneapolis that is now shooting for a star or two. There's a lot of preparation involved, far beyond the food alone.

Which are these places in mpls?

Piccolo (now closed) was certainly on that level. Spoon and Stable probably is too.

I know of at least one place that is actively trying to earn one, but I'm not naming names...

How about just favorite tasty spots for us locals...

I like Quang's for pho and Vietnamese food, Guavas is a new Cuban/Caribbean place that is quite good.

The fancier places would be something like Spoon and Stable and Bellecour, who have the same chef. Their quality would probably be on par with a mention in the Michelin guide but no star. I have a tendency to go with cheaper food at home and splurge when I'm traveling, so I do not have a good sample of the fine dining restaurants in MPLS.

There's a pretty good kaiseki restaurant in the north loop, but I can't remember the name. They have a very good Japanese whisky bar above, if you are willing to pay through the nose for Japanese whisky.

Ok, some favorite tasty spots... (most are cheap, some are expensive)

Big Daddy's BBQ, iPho (aka Saigon), Bull's Horn, Sandcastle (summer only), Gandhi Mahal, Eat Street Social, Harry Singh's Caribbean, Pimento, Sen Li Sen Lek, Tongue in Cheek, Travail, Ngon Bistro, Black Sheep Pizza, Hai Hai, Spoon and Stable, Bachelor Farmer, Revival, Brasa, Zen Box Izakaya, Manny's Tortas, Moroccan Flavors, Matt's Bar, Al's Breakfast, Lindey's, Bar La Grassa, 46th St Patisserie...

I can probably come up with more, but that should keep you busy for months.

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