Kyoto lands first new three‑star in six years

Kyoto picked up its first new three-Michelin-star restaurant in six years when Miyamaso was promoted in the 2026 Kyoto Osaka guide. (guide.michelin.com) Michelin announced the full Kyoto Osaka 2026 selection on April 23. Miyamaso, a ryokan restaurant in Kyoto, was the only new three-star promotion in this year’s guide. (guide.michelin.com) (michelin.com) The promotion ended a stretch with no new three-star restaurant in Kyoto or Osaka since the 2020 edition. Michelin said the upgrade brings Kyoto’s total to six three-star restaurants. (guide.michelin.com) Miyamaso is run by chef Hisato Nakahigashi, whose cooking centers on satoyama ingredients from the rural landscape around the restaurant. Michelin said the menu follows the seasons with foraged mountain vegetables, river fish, mushrooms and winter game. (michelin.com) (guide.michelin.com) The guide also widened the field below the top tier. Five restaurants were newly promoted to two stars — Doppo, Higashiyama Yoshihisa, Muromachi Yui and Tokuha Motonari in Kyoto, plus Teruya in Osaka. (guide.michelin.com) Nineteen restaurants picked up one star, including 12 in Kyoto and seven in Osaka. Michelin also added 12 new Bib Gourmand entries, bringing the guide’s total selection to 479 restaurants. (guide.michelin.com) Miyamaso’s rise was years in the making. Michelin said it won one star in the inaugural 2010 Kyoto Osaka guide, moved to two stars in 2011 and has held a Green Star since 2021. (guide.michelin.com) The 2026 edition also introduced the first Sommelier Award for the Kyoto Osaka area. Michelin gave it to Miki Tanaka, owner-sommelier of LOUISE in Osaka, alongside a Mentor Chef Award for Hideaki Matsuo and a Service Award for Yuko Kuwamura. (guide.michelin.com) For Kyoto, the headline was simple: a mountain inn that had been sitting at two stars for 15 years finally reached Michelin’s top tier. (michelin.com)