Knife Edge: Chasing Michelin Stars

Think about the best restaurant,

the best meal you've ever had.

Food so good that you can still remember it today.

But what's it take to become one of the world's greatest restaurants?

I've interviewed top chefs all over the world…

Oh, yeah!

…and they all say the pinnacle for every chef,

the greatest award a restaurant can get, is a Star.

A Michelin Star.

To win one, you have to impress Michelin inspectors

who have never let anyone in on their mysterious methods…

until now.

Working for the Michelin Guide is a bit like working for the CIA.

She's taking a lot of photos, and it looks like she might be taking notes.

It is definitely a VIP on table 6.

A Star could be the difference between going big…

I want three Stars!

…or going bust.

I'm losing about $20,000 a month.

We follow chefs around the world, pushing themselves to breaking point…

…over the course of an entire year.

We're gonna beat it out of you to get that second Star.

From London to Los Angeles…

Let's go. Faster, faster! Let's go!

…the mountains of Italy to Mexico City…

Is it a plate of fish, or is it a plate of shit and a half?

…all culminating in glitzy award galas,

where lives will be transformed.

One Michelin Star to…

This is everything.

Wow. Welcome to New York.

The beef is so good.

So, New York. The Michelin ceremony is drawing ever closer.

Where the world will find out who has been awarded their famous Stars.

Ticket for 236.

Coqodaq are hoping to do something unprecedented

and win a Star with fried chicken.

I mean, what the fuck is going on?

My family didn't sign up for this.

The Musket Room are trying to hold on to theirs.

Make sure they're hot. Come back, come back!

But Chef Mary has been stretched to her limit.

There's a lot of pressure to uphold everything we've built so far.

At the subway restaurant, Nōksu,

owner Bobby is losing thousands of dollars a week.

While Chef Dae, still in his twenties,

is trying to cope with the pressure of running his own kitchen

for the very first time.

People like him, perfection isn't even enough.

- Fuck this! -

Sometimes, I get fired up a little bit during service.

And as… as a cook, I should really keep working on controlling that,

but sometimes it comes out.

I guess it's passion.

But that passion that… In a good way, it's passion,

but in a bad way, it's just angry, you know.

You're just… just a crazy guy.

He is very hard on himself, uh…

Which, sometimes it's a good thing,

'cause he's always wanting to get better, every day.

There were days where I would check the cameras at 4:00 in the morning,

and I would see him cooking and…

at first I thought it was…

I thought it was crazy.

Mm.

Now that I look back, he doesn't wanna fail.

Oh, my God, man!

Nuts.

I feel like we're all vying to get this Star, right?

I think it would change our lives.

Two weeks before the Michelin awards,

comes one of the most nerve-wracking moments of the year.

The day restaurants find out if they've been invited to the ceremony

and are still in the running for Stars.

- -

Did you guys see the email yet?

What email? I have so many emails.

- I got the Michelin invite. -

- To the gala? - To the gala.

Amazing!

An invite doesn't guarantee you an award.

Many a chef has been crushed on the night.

Yeah. Worst case, we show up to the ceremony and we don't get a Star.

Hey, Steven.

What?

Hey, chefs? Could you stop for a second?

We just got our official invite to the Michelin ceremony.

- Are you serious? - Yeah.

Oh, sh…

It could still mean nothing, no?

I don't know. This is my first… This is our first time.

Oh, wow.

I'm not going.

- Chef, you have to go. - I might not go.

It's just too much pressure there.

Think about the past year and a half. Everything you put into this restaurant.

Yeah.

I mean, we're literally at the finish line.

Just a lot of pressure for me.

You know, the whole thing, but… I just, uh, I… just…

There are so many great chefs gonna be at the ceremony,

and I'm a young kiddo. I just…

I don't deserve it yet. Uh, I think that I need… long way to go.

I don't to… level to hang out with them, I think.

Where will you be if you're not going?

Uh, I might go fishing. I don't know.

So, this is it.

Once a year, the very best chefs from each region

are invited by Michelin to a spectacular ceremony,

where they announce who has won their famous Stars.

Has Coqodaq really made fried chicken so good

that Michelin will give them a Star?

So many sleepless nights. Blood, sweat, and tears.

But ultimately, we have a mission to achieve.

Has Chef Mary taken her eye off the ball at Musket Room

and lost hers?

There's a lot at stake to keep the Star.

We haven't been around as much. We've been doing so many other things.

Will we keep it this year? I don't know.

And can Dae prove the haters wrong and win big at just the age of 29?

Getting that Star, it would be the underdog claiming victory.

It would be the happy ending.

Oh, man. Thomas Keller, there, of Per. Hero!

I haven't seen Dae Kim from Nōksu yet.

But, hey, people are still coming in.

Film has the Oscars. Music has Grammys.

Restaurants have Michelin.

Tonight, careers will be made, and hearts will be broken.

Hello, hello!

Good evening, everyone. So thrilled that you're joining us here today.

What an incredible night we have ahead of us.

Okay, it's just about to get started.

The atmosphere's quietened. It's quite tense.

…pushing the boundaries of what's possible in the kitchen.

I still can't see Chef Dae here.

Let's take a moment to celebrate restaurants

that have upheld their Michelin Star distinction.

Okay, now we're about to do restaurants that already have one Star

in last year's guide.

Are they retaining them this year?

- Casa Mono. -

Are we gonna see The Musket Room?

Has Mary done enough this year to keep that Star?

Crown Shy of elegant New York.

Bravo! Let's go.

My heart always races during this.

Mari in the heart of New York.

Next, The Musket Room of New York.

Oh, what a relief.

Well done, Mary.

All right. Let's go party!

All right, now it's time to meet the chefs and teams

earning their very first Michelin Star.

Are we gonna see Coqodaq up there?

The it place. The creative fried chicken joint.

- - Whoo!

Nōksu, it would mean everything to that little tiny subway restaurant.

It would solve a lot of their problems. Get bums on seats

- and allow them to survive. -

Winning a Michelin Star is a life-changing achievement.

A moment that will define their careers and inspire the future of gastronomy.

So, let's not wait any longer.

I am thrilled to announce one Michelin Star to…

- …Bar Miller, Chef Jeff Miller… -

…from right here in New York. There he is!

Okay, we award one Michelin Star to…

Cafe Boulud, Chef Daniel Boulud…

They've done the As and the Bs.

We're now onto the Cs. Will Coqodaq be next?

So, hey, join me in celebrating as one Michelin Star goes to…

…Joo Ok, Chef Chang-Ho Shin from right here in New York.

So, Coqodaq is out of the running.

There'll be no Star for their fried chicken this year.

You're okay?

Yeah.

Now we award one Michelin Star to…

- - …La Bastide by Chef Andrea Calstier.

On stage, they're up to the Ls,

and Bobby really wants to see Nōksu's name come up soon.

Bravo!

But Chef Dae still isn't here.

We have more names to announce. No, we're not finished just yet.

Hello.

Ah, it's Dae.

And the excitement continues as we award one Michelin Star to…

Chef Miguel Guerra. Congratulations.

One Michelin Star to…

Oh, man…

Oh, fuck!

Nōksu, Chef Dae Kim.

Come on up!

Congratulations.