Read news from:
Austria
SHARE
COPY LINK

MICHELIN

€490 per head… and other key figures about France’s 616 Michelin-starred restaurants

The winners for the 2017 Michelin Guide for France were revealed on Thursday. Here's a look at the results, in numbers.

Published: 9 February 2017 16:30 CET
€490 per head... and other key figures about France's 616 Michelin-starred restaurants
French chef Yannick Alleno. Photo: AFP
1
 
The number of new three-star restaurants in France (for a total of 27). Yes, only one. And that one is the Alpine restaurant Le 1947 in the Courchevel. More on this later.
 
2
 
The number of Michelin stars that standout British chef Gordon Ramsay now has for his Bordeaux restaurant Pressoir d'Argent after picking up his second on Thursday.
 
6
 
That's how many stars French culinary superstar Yannick Alleno now has, after his Alpine restaurant Le 1947 won a third Michelin star on Thursday. His other three stars are for his Paris restaurant, Le Pavillon Ledoyen.
12
 
The number of new two-star restaurants in France (for a total of 86 altogether). These include three in Paris (Kei, La Table de l'Espadon, and Le Clarence), and two in Bordeaux (Le Pressoir d'Argent and La Grande Maison de Bernard Magrez). See the full list here.
 
14
 
That's the number of combined Michelin stars that the Alpine resort of Courchevel has, one of the biggest per-capita concentrations of stars.
 
Two of the resort's restaurants, Le Montgomerie and Le Kintessence, both recovered a second star they had lost in last year's edition of the guide after chef Nicolas Sale left and moved to the Ritz in Paris.
 
22
 
The number of seats at the Le 1947 restaurant, in Courchevel which is open from December to April, since 2008. Talk about an intimate meal, eh?
 
 
 
25
 
The price, in euros, of a lunchtime meal at the one-star Auberge Tiegezh in the Brittany town of Guer, which is among the cheaper restaurants on this year's list. 
 
52
 
The number of restaurants that lost a star this year. 
 
57
 
The number of new one-star restaurants in France – including 11 in Paris (for a total of 503 altogether). See the interactive map below to find out where all the starred restaurants are. 
 
 
 
 
70
 
The number of restaurants in France that picked up new stars on Thursday.
 
450
 
The price in euros of the most expensive meal (not including wine) at the Le 1947 restaurant, the only restaurant to pick up a three-star award this year. The restaurant bar is pictured below. 
 
 
490
 
The price in euros – per person!!! – for the three-star menu at the Pavillon Ledoyen restaurant in Paris. 
 
This includes a millefeuille layering of celeriac with 18-month ripened avocado, roasted duckling in a sugar crust with a clam broth, and a Norwegian charlotte with fig (plus much more).
 
616
 
That's the number of restaurants in France that have a Michelin star, either one, two or  three.

 
1900
 
The year that André and Edouard Michelin, two brothers, created the Michelin Guide. 
 
4,360
 
The number of restaurants reviewed for the 2017 guide. 
 
150,000
 
The number of copies of the new Michelin guide, that will go on sale on February 15th. Head to the official Michelin site to find out more. 
 

Member comments

Log in here to leave a comment.
Become a Member to leave a comment.

RESTAURANTS

Michelin unveils Covid-era France picks despite criticism

The Michelin Guide reveals Monday its annual pick of France's top restaurants despite criticism over its decision to hold the awards while establishments remain closed in the Covid-19 pandemic.

Published: 17 January 2021 15:32 CET
Michelin unveils Covid-era France picks despite criticism
Auberge du Pont de Collonges. Photo: AFP

Three-star chefs can rest easy, however, after Michelin said none will be demoted as the health crisis rages.

The industry bible's boss Gwendal Poullennec defended inspections that led to 57 new stars overall, even though restaurants remain shuttered after lockdowns imposed last spring and again since October.

“It's an important decision to support the industry, despite the current situation and perhaps even because of the situation,” Poullennec told AFP.

“All the establishments that have kept their star this year or won one are restaurants that fully deserve it,” he said.

READ MORE: Michelin calls off its 2021 France ceremony, but insists there will still be a guide

Michelin has drawn fire for bestowing its verdicts as chefs rack up losses while adapting their menus for takeaway or deliveries — and food fans have little chance of booking tables anytime soon, with or without face masks.

The rival Best 50 list, based in Britain, cancelled its 2020 ranking last year, while France's La Liste said this month that instead of rankings it would honour innovative chefs who have persevered amid the pandemic.

Michelin called off the lavish gala ceremony that was to be held in Cognac, southwest France – the first time outside Paris – and instead will announce the 2021 winners in a YouTube broadcast from the Eiffel Tower.

'Consistent quality'

But Poullennec said all three-star restaurants will keep their stars – France including Monaco counts 29 – while the handful of demotions will affect only restaurants that have closed or changed their dining concept.

He insisted that inspectors worked double duty and even cancelled their sacrosanct summer holidays to eat and drink as much as possible when restaurants were allowed to open under strict virus restrictions between France's lockdowns.

Michelin also brought in inspectors from elsewhere in Europe and even Asia to back up the French team.

“This selection has been made with the same serious attention, and inspectors were able to judge as many meals as the previous year,” he said.

“Despite the difficulties, chefs have risen to the occasion and maintained consistent quality, at times even succeeding in making further progress,” he added.

Poullennec, who took over the guide in 2018, has overseen several choices that have raised eyebrows among chefs and foodies alike.

Last year Michelin shocked industry insiders by downgrading the Auberge du Pont de Collonges — the oldest three-starred restaurant in the world — after the death of its legendary chef Paul Bocuse.

And in January 2019, Marc Veyrat became the first chef to sue the famous red guidebook after it withdrew the third star for his French Alps restaurant La Maison des Bois just a year after it was awarded.

Veyrat, who lost his case, has said he never wants to see a Michelin inspector in any of his restaurants ever again.

 

SHOW COMMENTS