On May 12, Michelin Guide officially posted on Instagram a list of 10 chicken rice restaurants introduced in Singapore. The list includes many famous names such as Tian Tian Hainanese Chicken Rice or Tiong Bahru Hainanese Boneless Chicken Rice. These restaurants have appeared in Michelin's Bib Gourmand category for addresses with delicious food at reasonable prices.
However, immediately after the post appeared, many Singaporean netizens reacted strongly, saying that the list did not accurately reflect the actual quality of famous chicken rice restaurants in this island nation.
Many people think that some restaurants have unstable flavors, reduced quality or selling prices that are too high compared to the experience received.
Tian Tian Hainanese Chicken Rice is one of the restaurants that received the most criticism despite being famous with international tourists.
One account commented: "Putting Tian Tian on the list completely undermines the reputation of the ranking.
Another person wrote: "I just ate Tian Tian recently and it's really not delicious. I feel ashamed that many tourists will leave Singapore and think this is the real flavor of chicken rice.
In addition, many Singaporeans also expressed disappointment when long-standing brands such as Wee Nam Kee Chicken Rice or Chatterbox did not appear in the list introduced by the Michelin Guide.
The debate then spread to Reddit when many people questioned Michelin's selection criteria. Some opinions suggested that the post did not clearly explain why the restaurants were chosen.
Another controversial address is Margaret Drive Sin Kee Chicken Rice. On the website, Michelin describes the restaurant's chicken as "soft and juicy", with "fragrant" rice and "addictive" ginger sauce.
However, some local diners gave contradictory comments, saying that the chicken meat is "dai and bland". Some other opinions said that the restaurant is sometimes delicious, sometimes not, and the quality is not really stable.
Chicken rice has long been considered Singapore's iconic dish. This dish includes boiled or roasted chicken served with rice cooked with chicken broth, often served with chili and garlic sauce, crushed ginger and black soy sauce.
At hawker centers - famous popular food stalls in Singapore, a chicken rice meal usually costs about 3.5-4.5 Singapore dollars (about 70-95,000 VND).
