What is the Michelin Guide?
First published in 1923, the Michelin Guide is an annual guide book of restaurants (and hotels). It awards the famous Michelin Stars, which are probably the most influential restaurant ratings in Europe. A series of 12 guidebooks cover most of the major cities of Europe, and, starting in 2005, Michelin added a guide to New York, its first foray into the United States. In the fall of 2006, it added a guide to San Francisco, the Bay Area and Wine Country.The guide awards one to three stars to a small percentage of restaurants of outstanding quality. One star means "a very good restaurant in its category," two stars mean "excellent cooking, worth a detour", and three stars is “exceptional cuisine, worth a special journey." Just to be listed in the guide, with no stars, is a major coup.
Influence
Appearing or not appearing in the Michelin Guide can make or break a restaurant. Not surprisingly, people in the business tend to take it seriously. In 2003, Bernard Loiseu, a French chef in Burgundy, committed suicide amid rumors that his restaurant might be downgraded from three to two stars.The Bay Area Guide
Michelin Guide Director Jean-Luc Narat said the company chose the Bay Area for its second North American guide because the region is ``passionate about food.''“It's a natural choice,'' he said in a Los Angeles Times interview. ``It's got its own culinary tradition, it's the birthplace of California cuisine and it's the region of wine. When you go to restaurants here, everyone is a foodie. Everyone talks about the food all the time. In L.A. maybe you have incredible and beautiful movie stars. But here, the celebrity stars are the chefs."
The company started with a list of 950 Bay Area restaurants and inspectors anonymously ordered 240 to 260 lunches and dinners each. The list was then narrowed down to 356. Of these, 28 Bay Area restaurants were given stars while the rest were included in the guide without stars. Of the 28 starred Bay Area restaurants, 10 are in Wine Country.
The 10 Wine Country Restaurants Given Michelin Stars in the 2007 Guide
Sonoma County:- Cyrus, Healdsburg, two stars
- Dry Creek Kitchen, Healdsburg, one star
- Farmhouse Inn & Restaurant, Forestville, one star
- K& L Bistro, Sebastopol, one star
- French Laundry, Yountville, three stars
- Auberge du Soleil, one star
- Bistro Jeanty, Yountville, one star
- Bouchon, Yountville, one star
- La Toque, Rutherford, one star
- Terra, St. Helena, one star
Sonoma County Restaurants Listed in the 2007 Guide (no stars)
- Applewood Inn & Restaurant, Guerneville
- Barndiva, Healdsburg
- Bistro Ralph, Healdsburg
- Bistro V, Sebastopol
- Cafe Citti, Kenwood
- Cafe La Haye, Sonoma
- Della Santina's, Sonoma
- Deuce, Sonoma
- El Dorado Kitchen, Sonoma
- Glen Ellen Inn, Glen Ellen
- Kenwood Restaurant, Kenwood
- Hana, Rohnert Park
- John Ash & Co., Santa Rosa
- Mirepoix, Windsor
- Mixx Enoteca Luigi, Santa Rosa
- Santi, Geyserville
- Sonoma-Meritage Martini Oyster Bar & Grill, Sonoma
- Syrah, Santa Rosa
- The Girl & the Fig, Sonoma
- Underwood, Graton
- Willow Wood Market Cafe, Graton
- Wolf House, Glen Ellen
- Zazu, Santa Rosa
- Zin, Healdsburg
