5 Winners and 4 Losers from the 2023 Michelin Awards in New York City

Michelin announced its 2023 stars for New York restaurants on Tuesday evening at a ceremony held in Tribeca. In a break from tradition, Michelin presented its awards for New York, Chicago, and Washington, D.C. at the same time.

Chef’s Table at Brooklyn Fare was removed from the three-star category; Sushi Noz and Odo were upgraded from one star to two; and two restaurants, Al Coro and Oxalis, held onto their stars after announcing that they would close at the end of the year. In total, 71 restaurants in New York ended the night with Michelin stars. Here are five winners and four losers from this year’s Michelin awards in New York City.

Winner: Japanese restaurants

When Sushi Noz was omitted from the one-star category on Tuesday night, the room erupted in cheers: It was almost assured that the Japanese restaurant would be upgraded from the single star it had held since 2018. It was awarded two stars for “excellent cooking” alongside Odo, a stunning Japanese restaurant in Flatiron that was also upgraded from one star. The restaurants were the only two new additions to the two-star category in New York this year. In total, 14 restaurants now hold that distinction. — Luke Fortney

Winner: Major Food Group

After losing its stars last year with the drop of ZZ’s Clam Bar and Carbone, Major Food Group saw a major win in landing a star with Torrisi. Rich Torrisi’s homage to New York Italian food has become the newest impossible-to-get-into Little Italy restaurant since it opened, in part because of a three-star review in the New York Times, in which Pete Wells notes that the group’s “weapon is maximalism,” with Torrisi, “doing the most subtle and evocative cooking of his career.” Eater critic Robert Sietsema, meanwhile, opines whether it’s worth it. — Melissa McCart

Loser: The Chef’s Table at Brooklyn Fare

The Chef’s Table at Brooklyn Fare has had a long and challenging year, and Michelin said, we’re not done yet. The fine dining restaurant, which has held its three stars since 2011, lost that rating this year — the first change to the three-star category in New York since 2018. The restaurant closed in July after a heavily publicized split between owner Moneer Issa and chef César Ramirez. It reopened with new chefs promoted to run the kitchen in October, making it ineligible for an award this year: The rating process for this year’s guide ended in late September. — Luke Fortney

Winner: Closed restaurants

Momofuku Ko and Contra were both stripped of their stars this year, as both restaurants recently closed. Yet, two restaurants that announced plans to close by the end of 2023 took home awards. Oxalis and Al Coro are both set to shut their doors and respectively retained their one- and two-star status (Oxalis has announced plans to relocate the restaurant to a new home next year). “The inspectors leave announced closures in the selection because restaurant-goers can still enjoy those spots for the time being — and sometimes things change,” says Andrew Festa, a spokesperson for Michelin. — Emma Orlow

Loser: Tatiana

One of the year’s most talked about restaurants in New York wasn’t invited to the awards. Tatiana, chef Kwame Onwuachi’s fine dining restaurant in Lincoln Center, did not receive a star, nor was it included in Michelin’s recognitions for service, cocktails, or wine. The Afro Caribbean restaurant was praised in Bon Appétit and the New Yorker this year. In April, five months after it opened, Tatiana was named the best restaurant in the city by the New York Times, beating out Eleven Madison Park and Le Bernardin. — Luke Fortney

Loser: Atomix

All eyes were on Atomix as Michelin announced its two-star restaurants on Tuesday night. The modern Korean restaurant has held two Michelin stars since 2019. It’s long been a contender for an upgrade to the three-star category, and with change-ups led by the exit of Chef’s Table at Brooklyn Fare, this seemed like it would have been the year. In the end, Atomix held onto its two stars. — Luke Fortney

Winner: HAGS

HAGS, which temporarily closed last year just two months after its debut, received an award this year: New York’s Young Chef Award went to co-owner Telly Justice. When HAGS opened, the restaurant had the goal of being a leader in queer and trans-led fine dining establishments in the country. The restaurant itself did not receive a star. — Emma Orlow

Loser: Modern Mexican restaurants

Casa Enrique and Claro, the city’s first and second Mexican restaurants to earn a Michelin star, were dropped from the one-star category on Tuesday. That leaves just one Michelin-starred Mexican restaurant in the city: Oxomoco, which has held a one-star rating since 2018. Cosme, the Mexican fine dining restaurant owned by Enrique Olvera, has never received a star from Michelin. That didn’t change this year, but the restaurant was honored at the ceremony with an exceptional cocktail award. — Luke Fortney

Winner: Chicago

The night’s only new three-star restaurant was Smyth, a New American restaurant in Chicago. The recognition was announced at the end of the ceremony with a performance art piece, in which red stars were drawn with finger paints over a portrait of the restaurant’s owners. New York has not seen a new three-star restaurant since Eleven Madison Park and the Chef’s Table at Brooklyn Fare were added to that category in 2012. Today, there are only four local restaurants at that level. — Luke Fortney