After 15 years at the summit of fine dining in New York, Masa is no longer a three-Michelin-star restaurant. Michelin confirmed the downgrade ahead of next week’s guide release — a rare move that rattled the city’s Michelin watchers.

Chef Masayoshi Takayama opened Masa in 2004 in the Time Warner Center (now Deutsche Bank Center). In 2007, Masa earned two Michelin stars, one fewer than it deserved, according to then-New York Times critic Frank Bruni. It earned its third star in 2008 as the first Japanese restaurant in the U.S. to do so. By 2015, it was the most expensive restaurant in the country, today running $1,000-plus per person for the counter omakase menu.

Michelin confirmed the downgrade in a statement released on Wednesday, November 12, noting that Masa, along with Chicago’s Alinea from Grant Achatz and Virginia’s Inn at Little Washington from Patrick O’Connell, would each lose a star ahead of the Michelin Guide’s regional ceremony on Tuesday, November 18, in Philadelphia.

”The Michelin Guide maintains its role of providing fair and qualitative recommendations to consumers, with its team of expert Inspectors, following its global methodology,“ reads the statement. ”It fully acknowledges the impact of its decisions on the establishments it honors.“

Following the announcement, the restaurant released a statement on behalf of Takayama. “For 15 years, we’ve been honored to stand among extraordinary company, and I’m so grateful to our guests for their enduring trust, loyalty, and friendship,” he says. “I am deeply proud of the hard work our team puts in day-in and day-out, and as always, we will continue to strive for excellence.”

Michelin’s unusual move follows last week’s drama when the winners were leaked ahead of the Michelin Guide South ceremony. In years past, the organization typically revealed its full list of additions, deletions, and promotions at the ceremony. In breaking with tradition, a spokesperson said the chefs and their teams “have been informed ahead of the ceremony,” emphasizing that “the Guide’s recommendations are far from fixed and are reassessed each year.”

The guide has not given a specific reason for the downgrades. It grades restaurants by “quality of the ingredients used, mastery of flavor and cooking techniques, the personality of the chef in his cuisine, value for money, and consistency between visits.” The demotion follows New York food media’s pointed criticism for the past few years. Masa was ranked 69 out of 100, in a rating of “not terrible” by New York magazine, with the notation that “Masa Takayama’s original omakase temple is not what it once was, and the prices are now officially absurd.” Masa did not make the New York Times “100 Best Restaurants” in 2025 or 2024.

The number of three-star restaurants in New York thus drops from five to four, at least for now — unless a new restaurant rises to the three-star coveted status at next week’s ceremony in Philadelphia’s Kimmel Center. The event bundles award announcements for New York, Chicago, D.C., and for the first time, Philadelphia, and Boston.

In the latest edition of the Michelin Guide, the four remaining three-star venues are Eleven Madison Park, Le Bernardin, Per Se, and Jungsik, chef Jungsik Yim’s restaurant, which moved up from two to three stars last year, becoming the first Korean restaurant in the U.S. to earn that distinction. Since the remaining three-star restaurants have apparently not been notified, it’s probably safe to say that they’re going to keep their three-star status.

The Masa news comes as omakase restaurants multiply across New York, often at a lower price than Masa. Whether the flood of restaurants reflects more competition for Masa or a broader recalibration of Michelin’s fine-dining standards remains to be seen.

Editor’s note: This article was updated to include a statement from Masa at 10:27 a.m. on November 13.