MICHELIN GUIDE. The prestigious red guide is preparing to unveil its selection of 2024 stars in France. Who are the favorite restaurants to win three stars? Rumors.
[Mis à jour le 15 mars 2024 à 19h10] The long-awaited ceremony of the Michelin Guide France has chosen the city of Tours in the Loire Valley to announce its prize list this Monday, March 18, 2024, from 5 p.m. “Land of culture and hospitality, the Loire Valley is one of those French territories which have contributed over the centuries to forging a true French art of living. From the meanders of the River of Kings to its game-filled forests, its tufa slopes to its agricultural plains, entire pages of the History of France and gastronomy have been written in this region now focused on the development of committed and responsible tourism” commented the international director of the Michelin Guide Gwendal Poullennec.
The ceremony will present the new Michelin stars but also specific awards for service and sommelier, without forgetting the green stars which reward restaurants committed to sustainable gastronomy. On March 4, the demotion of René and Maxime Meilleur’s restaurant, from 3 to 2 stars, was already announced by the Michelin guide teams. Will there be new restaurants with three stars in the Michelin Guide France? After Alexandre Couillon, newly crowned in 2023, these chefs are cited among the favorites for the move from two to three stars in 2024. Five of them work in Paris: Jean-François Piège at the Grand Restaurant, Alain Ducasse at Meurice, Jérôme Banctel at La Réserve, Stéphanie Le Quellec at La Scène or even Christophe Pelé at the Clarence. In the provinces, these heavyweights of French gastronomy are also expected: Yannick Alléno at La Table de Pavie in Saint-Émilion, Alexandre Gauthier at La Grenouillère in La Madelaine-sous-Montreuil and Olivier Nasti at La Table d’Olivier Nasti in Kaysersberg .
The 2024 edition of the Michelin France guide will be released on Friday March 22, 2022 at the price of 29 euros.
According to the Michelin Guide, these establishments “are distinguished by their good value for money and offer, for lunch and dinner, at least a complete menu for a maximum price of around forty euros”. In 2024, 56 new “accessible” restaurants have been distinguished. Discover the list on the Michelin website.
Michelin Guide inspectors, around forty in total, travel across France and Europe to award stars to a restaurant according to five criteria: the quality of the products, the personality of the cuisine (i.e. creativity), the mastery of cooking and flavors, the quality/price ratio as well as the consistency in the quality of the dishes offered. Avant-garde restaurants, traditional inns, remarkable institutions, the selected restaurants all bear witness to the richness of French heritage.
Since 1900, the Michelin guide has listed good restaurants. Originally, the guide was offered to car drivers, it indicated railway stations, post offices, doctors, pharmacists, hotels and restaurants. If initially, the stars indicated the price category of the restaurants, they soon came to represent the quality of the establishment on the following basis: one star means excellent cuisine in its category, two stars indicate a restaurant that is worth a detour , and finally, three stars highlight exceptional cuisine, a restaurant that is worth the trip.
Historically, the Michelin guide indicated good restaurants for drivers who traveled the roads of France. This is still true: a large number of houses are still located near the national 7, a busy road linking Paris to the South of France. Many of today’s 3 stars are the legacy of ancestral houses taken over by the younger generation, like Maison Pic, Lameloise, Maison Troisgros…