The Michelin Guide

So what’s it all about then? You may have only ever heard of the Michelin guide in passing, and to confuse matters, it is often referred to as ‘The Red Guide’ because of the actual colour of the book. After much debate among the Michelin bigwigs it was decided to make ‘The Michelin Guide’ its official title.
From its early beginnings in France in 1900, the guide has evolved into the bible for foodies the world over and gaining a three star rating - the highest available - has become the Holy Grail for ambitious chefs. Stars are worth their weight in gold, with a three star establishment able to command huge prices for its food.
Michelin states simply that the guide is a “selection of good restaurants”. Restaurants are chosen on “the quality of their cuisine, but service and comfort at the table are carefully noted too”. However, the exact criteria used by Michelin inspectors to rate a restaurant is shrouded in secrecy and it is rumoured that even the top chefs themselves do not know exactly what they are looking for.
We’ve talked about stars, but the Michelin guide uses many other symbols to rate the venues it features.
In terms of food, the ‘Bib Gourmand’ is worth noting, as it rates quality food against value for money - an extremely important aspect of modern dining today. The food has to be good quality, to gain this accolade, but innovation in the kitchen and the use of local ingredients is also an important part of the award’s criteria. A Bib Gourmand is effectively a notch below a one-star rating.
Then there are the ‘couvert’ symbols, which run form one to five crossed forks and spoons. These are used to rate an establishment on the quality of its décor and cutlery, and the level of service a diner can expect.
Now back to the stars. These are used extremely sparingly and there have been various accusations that the inspectors favour French food when awarding them, but this has never been substantiated. Despite claiming to re-visit each restaurant in its guide on average every 18-months with a different inspector, it has been said that the guide is slow to react to changes in the restaurant scene and drags its heels when it comes to awarding or removing stars.
In England at the time of writing (June 2007) there are only three three-star Michelin Restaurants - Gordon Ramsay in Royal Hospital Road, Chelsea, The Fat Duck, in Bray, and The Waterside Inn, also in Bray, and a short walk from The Fat Duck.
There are 12 restaurants with two stars, five of which are in London, and less than 100 with a one-star rating. Interestingly France is streets ahead when it comes to having three-star restaurants - 26 at the time of writing. The next highest in the list was Germany, with six three-starred restaurants. France was also a long way ahead when it came to two and one-star awards.
Michelin is extremely keen to emphasise that the guide is not intended to act as a consultancy service for restaurants or force establishments to spend huge sums of money in order to obtain an award. Literature on its website highlights how it is also staunchly proud of its independence and the impartially of its reviews and that there is no fixed number of awards given - or taken away - in any given year.
The company’s website states: “All the guide can do is present what we have found…If we found ten three-star restaurants tomorrow, we would put them in the guide. The absence of fixed quotas cuts both ways.”
So that’s what the company says, and now for a bit of personal experience. On the whole the guide offers you an accurate idea of what you can expect at any particular restaurant. It is a good barometer in terms of the quality of the food, service and the dining experience as a whole. There can be exceptions to this, but they are few and far between.
As we have already seen, some people have raised suspicions that the guide shows preference towards French cooking, although the company states that staff are always based in the country where the restaurants they review are located. In theory this could mean that many of them are not of French origin, thus why would they have this prejudice?
There are probably reams of websites out there devoted to the conspiracy theories surrounding the Michelin ratings system, however if you take the guide for what it is, and always use your own common sense and judgement, then it will be a useful tool.
And if you’re really serious about food and expanding your restaurant repertoire then a copy of the Michelin guide is an absolute must.

For a complete guide to all the restaurants with Michelin stars in the United Kingdom visit http://www.michelinrestaurantsguide.com/michelin-uk-restaurants.asp.

HISTORY LESSON*

1900 - Brothers Andre and Edouard Michelin produce a guide for motorists travelling around France. It featured directions and also the location of petrol stations, garages, toilets and hotels. It was free at this time.

1908 - The guide introduces a one to five star rating system for the hotels it featured.

1909 - This edition featured information about places where a traveller could eat a respectable lunch or dinner.

1914 - The guide was broadened out to include several other European countries.

1920 - The guide was available for sale. It had been free up until now.

1926 - A ‘little black star’ was introduced to denote a hotel selling fine cuisine.

1933 - It is rumoured that this is when the first Michelin inspector started his rounds.

1950 - The guide celebrates its 50th birthday

1968 - A guide to museums and other important visitor destinations in New York is launched with a green cover.

1970 - Affordable meals are recognised in the guide.

1997 - The bib gourmand symbol is introduced.

2000 - The guide is now 100 years old.

2003 - Affordable hotels are recognised within the guide, using the ‘Bib hotel’ symbol.

2005 - The first Michelin guide to restaurants in North America is launch, with the New York edition.

* This information as been compiled using various websites as reference. If there are inaccuracies or omissions, please let us know.