What Does it Take to be Shown in the Michelin Restaurant Guide?

Hong Kong is the food capital of the world.  You can find virtually anything to eat here.  Every year Michelin publishes their restaurant guide.  There has been some controversies with the guide because many say that the restaurant list doesn't represent the true restaurant scene in Hong Kong.  The list has been seen as bias towards Western restaurants serving non-Chinese cuisines.

At one point Michelin started to include more local Chinese restaurants in its list, but these restaurants refused to be named, claiming that they don't need any foreign authority to say that they are good or bad.  Regardless, the controversies do help to get these restaurants exposed in the media and people would take notice of these restaurants.  Promotion is free so take advantage of it.

A few weeks ago I visited a Michelin 2010 listed 2-star Chinese restaurant in the Langham Hotel:

We ordered a few dishes and it turned out that one of the dishes was incorrectly put into the order system by the waiter.  We said it's okay and would be glad to pay for it (we are a loyal customer and have been to Ming Court many times before).  The waiter immediately said in order to make up for his mistake, he would like to offer an expensive desert to us  free of charge.

In service marketing, this is called enpowering the frontline employees.  These employees have the authority to do whatever necessary under the circumstances to resolve issues with the customers.  This is almost unheard of in the local Chinese restaurants, since most owners tell their frontline staff that if you make mistakes, they come out from your paychecks.

Ming Court dishes are not that outstanding among all the available Chinese restaurants in the city.  However, not many restaurants will be able to match its service.  Keep in mind that the service is part of the marketing strategy a restaurant should have, since it affects the perception of the restaurant's brand.