Kiwi restaurant ‘stars’ in its own guide after Michelin snub

New Zealand restaurateurs — snubbed for years by the Michelin Guide and its celebrated star rating system — open “restaurant with the most stars.” Leading Kiwi chef Ben Bayly created a special one-off dining experience under the starry skies of Kura Tawhiti (Castle Hill). Located in the foothills of the Southern Alps in the country’s South Island, the pop-up venture invited 50 international tastemakers to judge its local cuisine for themselves.

Both New Zealand and Australia have failed to rate a single Michelin star despite their globally acclaimed wines and local dishes. Branded Pou-o-Kai — the “restaurant with the most stars” — it was billed as a one-of-a-kind dining experience.

“The definition of a three-star restaurant in the Michelin Guide means exceptional cuisine worthy of a special journey,” Bayly said. “We think that New Zealand cuisine is in a category of its own. We call it superior cuisine, worth a journey to the edge of the Earth.” He added: “Why be satisfied with a Michelin star, when you can cook under 2.5 billion of them?”

Though it’s a one-off, the bespoke dishes served at Pou-o-Kai will be replicated across Bayly’s New Zealand restaurants, including those in Auckland and Queenstown, through to August 2025.

Tourism New Zealand chief executive René de Monchy said: “We’re used to New Zealand being left off the list. “First it was world maps and now it’s the Michelin Guide, so we’re happy to take matters into our own hands. “Our night skies are world famous, rightly so, but our cuisine is worthy of a star or three.”

The tourism board said the bespoke dining experience was timed to showcase New Zealand’s “celestial wonders” such as the Southern Lights (Aurora Australis) and the Milky Way.