Michelin: Always find the right restaurant

I have been following the Michelin Guide for years.

I want to tell you right up front that this is a personal recommendation for you, simply to offer you some assistance.

I am neither in contact with Michelin nor am I being paid for this – they don’t even know that I am writing this text.

First of all, let me talk about Michelin and then I would like to explain to you why I am so convinced of them as a tester:

Michelin is the leading restaurant critic in the world. Nothing comes after that.

The lives of ambitious chefs are determined by their stars. Receiving your first star is like being knighted – only better.

The drama is so high, the status so valuable and the level of excellence so intense that several chefs have already taken their own lives after losing a star.

Michelin became famous for its 1-3 stars and its great reputation as a tester.

The stars mean the world.

You may know the name? That's right! It is actually the tire manufacturer.

In the 1930s – at a time when people drove far less – they published a guide in which they recommended restaurants to their tire customers where they could eat well.

The marketing department communicated the story that it was purely a goodie for the customers - but in reality they simply wanted to trigger customers to drive more and thus wear out their tires faster.

Therefore, at the beginning the focus was on finding and recommending gems outside of the cities.

It is precisely these pearls that I still value very much today, although the cities have not been neglected for a long time and the guide functions and operates completely detached from tire sales.

The restaurants were and are rated with 1–3 stars:

1 star: Worth a stop
2 stars: Worth a detour
3 stars: Worth a trip

The definitions are very modest by today’s standards:

As a three-star chef, you are one of the best in the world, and with just one star, you are simply a really cool guy who has what it takes!

At this point I would like to express my respect to the chefs out there!

The tremendous effort they put in, the extremely high level at which they compete, the dedication and years of training they have to go through to truly be among the good and the best – the world of bars and spirits producers could learn a thing or two from this!

I have never been really disappointed by their recommendations. There have been 1-2 times when I would have rated the store better or worse, but I have never been disappointed.

The exciting thing is: only the food is rated.

Not the service.
Not the facility.
Not the cutlery.
Nothing else.

A misconception and a common excuse is that the star was not awarded because the restaurant does not have white tablecloths and does not offer stuffy service.

This is nonsense and has been refuted, among other things, by a legendary restaurant that has earned three stars even though the guests sit on beer benches.

In addition to the positive experiences as a guest, one thing in particular convinced me about the Michelin Guide:

They are not for sale.

This is also something they are often accused of.

I can say first hand that this is not the case.

First, Michelin is a very closed organization that goes to great lengths to keep its testers anonymous.

Second, I worked at the Ritz Hotel London in 2011-2012.

At that time, the hotel was privately owned by the Barclay Brothers. The restaurant is (rightly) considered one of the most beautiful in the world.

Problem: It had no star.

This fact drove the owners crazy, as status was so important to them (which I completely understand!).

What I mean is: If there was a way to buy a star, these gentlemen would have done it.

So that's a brief summary of why Michelin is by far the best restaurant critic for me and why I primarily rely on them.

A few years ago they released an app that gives you restaurant recommendations for your desired destination – and these recommendations are impressive and down-to-earth.

It is a misconception that it is only about the star ratings.

Because even for me – as much as I enjoy eating at Michelin-star restaurants – it is really something special (and expensive) and often doesn’t fit with what I’m craving at the time.

For me, the most valuable award in everyday life is the Bib Gourmand. The sweet-toothed tire man that identifies a restaurant with an excellent price-enjoyment ratio.

The app is helpful in the city where I live, but it really comes into its own when I travel.

Hotels now also rate them – also very helpful for travel.

Here is the link to the website where you can find the restaurants. You can take a look:

https://guide.michelin.com/at/de

I'm going to have a nice day in this beautiful city and have something nice for lunch. I'm sure I won't be disappointed today either.