Miyamaso earns 3 Michelin stars

Kyoto fine dining can feel abstract until one restaurant suddenly becomes the story. That happened with Miyamaso, a long-running mountain inn and restaurant in Kyoto, which just moved up to three Michelin stars in the Michelin Guide Kyoto Osaka 2026. That is Michelin’s highest rating — and in this case it is not just another annual reshuffle. It is Kyoto’s first new three-star restaurant in six years, which tells you something about how hard this jump is. ### What exactly changed? Miyamaso was promoted from two stars to three in the 2026 Kyoto-Osaka guide, revealed on April 23, 2026, with the guidebook and e-book released on April 28. Michelin also rolled out 25 newly starred restaurants across the two cities, but Miyamaso was the headline move because three-star promotions are rare and carry the most global weight. (guide.michelin.com) ### What is Miyamaso? It is not a flashy urban tasting-counter story. Miyamaso is a historic ryokan-style restaurant in Kyoto’s Hanase/Ohara mountain area, known for “foraged cuisine” rooted in satoyama — the lived-in countryside landscape between village and wild land. The restaurant is tied to seasonal mountain vegetables, river fish, mushrooms, and game, with chef Hisato Nakahigashi building menus around what the surrounding landscape gives him. (guide.michelin.com) ### Why is that unusual? Because Michelin often rewards precision and consistency, but Miyamaso’s identity depends on nature being variable. Basically, the restaurant’s whole point is that the season decides part of the meal. That makes the achievement feel bigger — like winning at the highest level while refusing to sand off the rough edges that make the place distinctive in the first place. Michelin’s own write-up leans into the stream sounds, birdsong, wild herbs, and mountain produce rather than urban luxury cues. (guide.michelin.com) ### How long has this been building? A long time. Miyamaso got one Michelin star in the inaugural 2010 Kyoto-Osaka edition, then two stars the following year, and it has also held a Green Star since the 2021 edition. So this is not a sudden discovery. It is more like the last step in a 15-year Michelin arc — plus a sustainability nod already on the record. (guide.michelin.com) ### What else happened in the guide? The 2026 edition covers 479 restaurants across Kyoto and Osaka. Michelin added five new two-star restaurants — four in Kyoto and one in Osaka — plus 19 new one-star restaurants and 12 new Bib Gourmand picks. Kyoto now has six three-star restaurants, while Osaka has three. The guide also introduced the Kyoto-Osaka area’s first Sommelier Award. (guide.michelin.com) ### Why does Kyoto care so much? Because Michelin stars are not just bragging rights — they shape travel. A new three-star in Kyoto gives high-end diners one more reason to plan an entire trip around a reservation, especially when the restaurant offers something that feels hard to replicate elsewhere. Miyamaso is selling more than dinner. It is selling a very specific version of Kyoto — traditional, seasonal, rural, and deeply place-bound. That is catnip for destination dining. (guide.michelin.com) ### What did the chef say? At the Osaka ceremony on April 24, Hisato Nakahigashi said he found it “quite strange” to be standing there and said he would keep working diligently and prepare meals with great care. The tone fits the restaurant’s image — understated, almost wary of turning a mountain food tradition into a victory lap. ### Bottom line? (guide.michelin.com) This is Michelin rewarding a restaurant that is deeply local rather than broadly international in style. Miyamaso’s third star says Kyoto’s most powerful food story right now is not reinvention for its own sake. It is mastery rooted in landscape, season, and restraint. (japantoday.com)