Michelin 2022: Sheffield missing out on star as disappointing as 'hearing a microwave ping when you've ordered triple cooked chips'

It is now six years since Sheffield could just about claim one of it’s own held a Michelin star – and that was at The Old Vicarage in Ridgeway on the Derbyshire border.

To earn a Michelin star is about as prestigious as it gets in the culinary world. It is recognition that the food being shipped out of the kitchen and onto diners’ tables is of the highest quality.

The award also gives the recipient a USP – something unique that they have over their peers in the very competitive restaurant business.

A restaurant with a Michelin star becomes a talking point and people from far and wide tend to make the extra effort to go to places that have this special recognition.

That Sheffield has missed out again on landing a Michelin star is as disappointing as hearing a microwave ping when you have ordered triple cooked chips.

But it’s not all doom and gloom.

The Old Vicarage at Ridgeway, Juke & Loe on Ecclesall Road, Brocco Kitchen at Hunters Bar, Rafters at Nether Green and Jöro in Kelham Island were all included on a list of places within the guide which have been recognised as offering quality food.

While there are obvious benefits to receiving a star, there are also pitfalls.

Just as stars can be given, they can also be taken away if inspectors deem culinary standards to have slipped.

So there is pressure. One French chef last year returned his restaurant’s two stars, citing the coronavirus pandemic lockdown as the deciding factor.

It gave him perspective on the important things in life, and he told how the break allowed him to reconnect with his home life and family away from long hours in the kitchen.

You also have to ask how important is a Michelin star to the diner?

The novelty factor aside, I think you’ll find Sheffield’s top restaurants – of which there are many – will remain popular whether or not there is a Michelin star award stuck in the window.

The city’s food and drink scene is thriving – and will continue to do so with or without that prestigious star.