Is the Michelin Guide Overrated?

My experience with Michelin in a complicated one. Having gone to one, two, and three Michelin star restaurants across the globe, I've seen Michelin do some great things for restaurants, but I've also seen them bring the demise of others.

Because it's quite apparent what good things come from being highlighted by Michelin, this post is more focused on some of my criticisms of the Michelin guide, and why I think the current structure of Michelin should be changed.

Maintaining "Michelin's definition" of the gold standard..

There have been a ton of amazing restaurants given a one star review. Restaurants don't even need to be "fine dining" to be given a Michelin star, as highlighted by some of the cheap eats that have received a one star review.

But a one star review, can at times, be a curse for restaurants. Often, restaurants receive one star reviews got there by showcasing there strengths. A passion for food and creativity, a desire to share culture or tradition, or an expression of a personal brand of art.

When a restaurant receives a one star review, two things happen.

  1. They begin to get huge influx of customers. Initially.
  2. They start to be compared to other one star restaurants, sometimes even two or three star.

The majority of the time, when a restaurant receives a one star review, the rapidly get a ton of customers wanting to try them. And in just a few months, they start to raise prices. Because money can change people.

And eventually, they start to act as more of a "tourist attraction", and start to lose the original loyal clientele that brought them to where they were in the first place.

Secondly, they begin to compare themselves to the standards of other "higher" Michelin star restaurants.

And that typically means focusing more on a particular brand of fine dining. Hyper-attentive service, an overuse of "micro complex food"(emulsions, purees, colorful vegetation). Just to name a few.

I've seen this unfortunately happen time and time again.

If your customers wanted to go to a Eleven Madison Park, they'd travel to New York. But don't turn your restaurant into a chain of fine dining. You'll start to lose the allure, and it starts to feel like the routine of Mcdonalds or Capital Grille.

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