The case in summary: Celebrity chef Eyvind Hellstrøm believes that Michelin stars are the best a restaurant can achieve, but that it does not necessarily ensure financial success. The restaurant Under in Lindesnes, which received its first Michelin star in 2020, has struggled to attract enough guests and has had to change the concept. The restaurant Schlägergården outside Oslo, which received a Michelin star in 2022, has also closed, partly due to challenges in recruiting serving staff during the pandemic. Hellstrøm believes that a restaurant should not open with the goal of getting a Michelin star, but rather focus on the guests and the quality of the food. The summary is made by an AI service from OpenAi. The content is quality assured by news’s journalists before publication. – It is the best thing you can achieve in this world, says celebrity chef Eyvind Hellstrøm. He is talking about Michelin stars, which are a quality stamp on good food and which are awarded to restaurants all over the world. Hellstrøm knows what he is talking about. His restaurant Bagatelle received its first star in the Michelin guide in 1986. Six years later it received two stars. However, the master chef does not believe that such stars make it go to heaven. – It is not a matter of course that a fantastic restaurant will do well. It is more about the economic situation, he says. The spectacular restaurant Under in Lindesnes is an example of this. Under was Europe’s first underwater restaurant when it opened in Lindesnes in 2019. The restaurant cost NOK 50 million. Photo: Tor Erik Schrøder / NTB scanpix From long waiting lists to empty tables When Under with a view straight out to sea opened in March 2019, everything looked promising. The restaurant was fully booked half a year in advance, and 7,000 were on a waiting list. Almost a year later, in February 2020, the restaurant received its first Michelin star. But it only went downhill from there. It started a couple of weeks later, when Norway and the world shut down due to the corona pandemic. Afterwards, the restaurant struggled to get enough guests. In September last year, all employees were made redundant. Ubostad now says that he is unsure whether the Michelin star had anything to say. – For our part, it is difficult to define whether the star has been important to us or not, he says. In recent months, the restaurant has been closed to change the concept. General manager for Under Stig Ubostad in the restaurant which has received great international attention. Photo: Per-Kåre Sandbakk / news Schlägergården has closed The restaurant Schlägergården outside Oslo also closed recently. It opened in the summer of 2021 and received a star in the Michelin Guide in 2022. Owner Björn Svensson says it also started there with the corona pandemic. – It is very difficult to recruit people in our industry, and the pandemic made it even more difficult to get hold of catering staff, he says. He has also told Dagens Næringsliv that they never got the outdoor seating and that the location a little far outside the city center has made it somewhat challenging for guests to come. Björn Svensson in action on the last opening day at restaurant Schlägergården outside Oslo. Photo: Henrik Myhr Nielsen / news On a normal day they had around 30 guests. – There are around seven or eight cooks for 30 people, says Svensson. – Is there additional pressure with a Michelin star? – I don’t feel it. You have to deliver regardless of whether you have a star or not. That is what the service profession is all about. Svensson says he started the restaurant with the aim that it would last. Schlägergården had its last opening day on 31 January this year. Photo: Henrik Myhr Nielsen / news – Expectations are set very high Hellstrøm describes having a Michelin star as always going uphill. – Expectations are set very high and it can feel like a punishment because you have to live up to them and deliver just as well every single day, he says. He also believes that Michelin stars create expectations about what the restaurant should look like. – A star restaurant should somehow be divine. In any case, his recipe for a good restaurant is not to focus on getting Michelin stars. – You should never open a restaurant with the aim of getting a star. Then you start at the wrong end. The focus must be on the guests and the quality of the food, says Hellstrøm. Eyvind Hellstrøm believes that Michelin stars lead to higher expectations. Photo: news Future plans Under In April, Under reopens with a new concept. – We are actually going back to what was the origin. The main thing is that we should be local, says general manager Ubostad. He says that they must utilize the raw materials in the best possible way and operate sustainably both in terms of access to raw materials and the working environment. – We will combine this with creating enormously good guest experiences, says Ubostad. – Even if you can lose the star? – If we lose it, we will. Our aim has always been to create good and unique guest experiences. That is what is primary. The star must come as a consequence of that, he says.
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