Michelin star is no secret to the Culinary world, yet for many of us at least the who, what, why, how of Michelin star remains a mystery and I’m more than happy to piece things together, All right, let me be clear about something there is no accolade more prestigious than a Michelin star status for restaurants. They are in other words regarded as the Oscars of the global culinary scene. Stick with me here as I’m about to throw some light on The Michelin Guide, What exactly a Michelin Star is? How are they awarded? and more.
To begin with Michelin is a French tire manufacturing company founded by brothers Andre and Édouard Michelin in 1889. You must be wondering, what does an elite ranking system for restaurants have to do with Michelin? A brand globally regarded for its tires?
The emergence of Michelin guide
Back in the early 1900’s with the advent of automobiles Michelin a young brand relatively, developed a trip guide urging people to take their cars for a road trip to boost the demand for automobiles and obviously car tires, And these guides initially handed out for free, comprised information about, popular locations, road maps, fancy restaurants and hotel stays. in addition to guidelines on how to repair and change tires obviously, This turned out to be an instant success for Michelin as their tire sales rose significantly. World War 1, halted the publication of the guide. Subsequently after the war modified editions of the Michelin guide were distributed free of cost until 1920. While visiting one of his merchant’s shop André Michelin noticed copies of Michelin guide stacked up to support one of their work bench. which reinforced his belief in the principle “man only truly respects what he pays for”, consequently free distributions were ended and a modified edition of Michelin guide was released carrying more detailed information, Priced at 750 francs back in 1920. Owing to the surge in popularity of the restaurant section of the guide , Michelin employed professional food critiques who evaluated restaurants as mystery diners based on the quality of their food and customer service. As a result Michelin were able to develop this widely revered “guide” highlighting the finest restaurants and continue to do it till this day.
The birth And Evolution of Michelin Star ratings
It was from 1926 The guide began awarding Michelin Star ratings to restaurants in France. Initially the top performing restaurants were allotted a single Michelin Stars, This practice continued for the next five years until 1931, subsequently in the same year Michelin introduced a three categories of ratings for restaurants, Which is followed still today. Even if a restaurant has one Michelin star, It is considered to be Top Notch, Ensuring high-quality ingredients, unique flavors with a consistent approach. Whereas Two and three star restaurants in addition to the aforementioned qualities feature Professionals capable of delivering un-matched dining experience consistently.
- One star: A very good restaurant in its category.
- Two stars: Excellent cooking, worth a detour.
- Three stars: Exceptional cuisine, worth a special journey.
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In 1939 Michelin guide again hit a roadblock due to World War 2, As it contained maps that were useful to the Allied Forces, It makes me wonder why would France ban the Michelin guide as they were a key member of the Allied forces? And Hitler’s French Invasion began in 1940 a year later from there, May be some of you can clarify this in the comments.
How does a restaurant earn the coveted Michelin star?
Now let’s deal with the most significant question How Michelin stars are conferred ? What are the major criteria in the process? The fact that the Michelin guide still uses the same methods to rate restaurants as it did when it started was a bit too surprising for me. To initiate this lengthy process. The Michelin Guide team will select a number of restaurants in particular locations to have them inspected by anonymous reviewers, or inspectors, Who Travel to different parts of the world and sample the best cuisine available. These highly experienced professionals visit Hundreds of restaurants with the objective of identifying the top performers. Inspectors make multiple visits to the same restaurant during different seasons and hours in order to ensure a flawless judgement on below parameters
- Quality of Ingredients as well as the food
- Efficacy of the implemented cooking techniques and a knowledge of distinct flavors
- Chef’s personality as represented in the dining experience
- Value for money
- Consistency between mystery diner/inspector visits
Once all the restaurants that are being considered have been examined, Teams across the globe meet with the Michelin Guide director for what is referred to as ‘star sessions’ that last days often involve discussing the ratings of each restaurant. before determining which restaurants should be conferred with Michelin Star/Stars
It is to be noted that Michelin inspectors visits are always anonymous, in order to keep them from receiving any favors while they dine. They follow the same protocol for booking, dining, and paying for meals as any other guests. I have even read somewhere that inspectors keep their role a secret even from their closest friends and family.
Additionally Michelin also confer
- Green Star award for restaurants that advocate for ethical and sustainable dining.
- Michelin Bib Gourmand to restaurants that offer high-quality food at a reasonable price.
- Plate Michelin to recognize the use of fresh ingredients that are meticulously prepared, resulting in a satisfying dining experience.
- Distinguished Wine List, Distinguished Sake List, and Distinguished Cocktail List . to restaurants that may or may not be awarded Michelin Stars.
- The Michelin evaluates hotels and restaurants based on their “comfort and quality” however, Michelin Stars are not given for these particular standards.
Some numbers related to Michelin stars
As per the Michelin website there are about 3471 Michelin Star restaurants in the world, with 2846 holding a Single Michelin Star and around 481 awarded 2 Michelin Stars. And 144 restaurants are honored with 3 Michelin star ratings , besides that there are 501 restaurants conferred with Green Star awards in fact there are several restaurants with both Michelin and Green Star ratings. Furthermore there are 3339 restaurants currently that have received the Bib Gourmand award. However this is subject to change each year as the guide is published around the world
Data Source : Official Michelin guide website https://guide.michelin.com/en/restaurants/sustainable_gastronomy
Although the Michelin Guide is Widely regarded as a reliable source for information on fine dining, there have been some criticisms or disagreement associated with the rating program, just like with any subjective assessment. Such as their choices of restaurants were arbitrary, and biased towards French chefs and a French-speaking public. Despite this, the guide’s strict evaluation procedure and inspectors’ anonymity have earned it enormous credibility in the food industry.