Friday, November 9, 2007

Michelin Starring Los Angeles

A most excellent friend told me about the Michelin *oopsie* this week. It's nice to know I'm not the only one making *oopsies* these days.

The L.A. Times reported that the finicky folks over at Michelin, the French-based food rating guide that has led kitchens to greatness or catastrophe, inadvertently revealed their Los Angeles and Las Vegas ratings results on their website before their official release.

Besides the prestige of receiving a star, the article points out that an increase in business is inevitable.
With Michelin stars come prestige, but stars also bring business. "It was one of the single greatest factors in affecting our business and the demographic of our clientele," says David Kinch, chef-owner of Manresa in Los Gatos. Last year the restaurant received two stars when the "Michelin Guide San Francisco, Bay Area & Wine Country" was published for the first time. "It changed everything. It's been amazing. Visitors coming from all over the world. All of a sudden we became a part of the trail."
You'll find the fully leaked list for Los Angeles here, which includes 3 two star restaurants ( "Excellent cooking and worth a detour"), and 15 one star ("A very good restaurant in its category").

Side Note: This became much more annoying when I realized that Joe's Restaurant in Venice received a star. It was busy enough when it was one of our favorite restaurants. Now, it'll be impossible to get into...much less with a high chair. *le sigh*

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