Singapore may seem close, but the flight takes more than five hours from Shanghai.A few months ago, aside from attending the Michelin awards ceremony in Singapore, I finally had the chance to visit my old friends — and couple — Francisco and Fernanda at their Chilean restaurant Araya.I first met them when they were head chef and pastry chef at Nappa in Shanghai.

In the recently released Michelin Guide Tokyo 2026, one familiar name popped up in the list of new one-star restaurants—and I nearly jumped out of my chair in delight.