It’ll be a sad day if any of them do get a star.
None. They’ll be going in the bib gourmand.
The guidebooks do not have photos. Most of the restaurants in the guidebooks do not have stars, The Plate, or Bib Gourmand.
These photo requests have nothing to do with the book (except that presumably the restaurants will be in it, we’ll see) or the stars. They’re explicitly for online use only.
The guidebooks do have photos, although I don’t think they use Instagram photos for those. The Instagram photos are used for their Instagram accounts, inspector instagrams, and online distribution.
For Socal, I don’t think any Chinese restaurants will be starred. With a small chance I think is Bistro Na’s. SFBA doesn’t really have any Chinese starred places…Benu and Mister Jiu’s have Chinese flavors but I would not consider them chinese restaurants. If you consider Nightshade a Chinese restaurant maybe it has an outside chance of getting a star.
*Not which ones I think should get a star, but which I think may get a star (or two).
DTF
Meizhou Dongpo (Arcadia)
Chengdu Taste
A star for Chengdu Taste would be a radical change from what kind of places get them around SF.
Yes but then again, I suspect the California Board of Tourism didn’t pay almost $1million to the Michelin folks for SoCal to be ignored.
The SFBA guide includes a well-informed selection of Chinese restaurants in places like San Mateo, Santa Clara, and Milpitas (our equivalent of the SGV). Not one has a star or even The Plate, but a fair number have Bib Gourmand.
So I expect the statewide guide will include a similar selection of SGV Chinese restaurants. Chengdu Taste should certainly get a Bib Gourmand
There’s no reason for Visit California to care which restaurants get stars. They’re just betting that a statewide Michelin Guide would increase tourism.
Michelin does a horrible job of covering Chinese populated areas/our equivalent of SGV. While Milbrae and the places closer to SF have decent coverage with a lot of Bibs for Chinese restaurants, the South and East Bay areas of Milpitas, Fremont, Cupertino, etc. are not covered at all. Milpitas and Fremont do not have a single restaurant in the guide (Milpitas once did, but not anymore). Cupertino is in the guide, but only with Alexander’s Steakhouse–none of the great Chinese restaurants.
Though to be fair none of them deserve stars. There are many more easy Bibs that are not included, though.
Milpitas is the equivalent of SGV??? Like for Chinese food??? I’m shocked. Never heard that.
For Cantonese restaurants, I don’t see any SGV ones deserving of The Plate if I compare them to the places I’ve been to in Hong Kong. The Cantonese places in Hong Kong that had gotten The Plate are either highly specialized street food stalls (like Canto BBQ, wanton noodle, or HK style egg waffles) or full blown restaurants, like Fook Lam Moon or The Chairman that are light years ahead of what SGV can offer.
I doubt the SF Bay Area inspectors have used the same standards as the HK inspectors when evaluating Chinese restaurants.
The most recent copy I have is 2016 so I’m out of date. Looks like currently no restaurants at all, Chinese or otherwise, between Oakland and San Jose. Din Tai Fung gets The Plate.
That’s the thing that I’m always curious about. How should we see stars and Michelin standards in different countries? Seemingly, standards are different depending on the country. Michelin gave 3 stars to Bombana in Hong Kong which is the only Italian restaurant outside of Italy that has 3 stars but Andy Hayler and many others swear that it’s only a 1 star restaurant at best if it’s in Italy.
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The only places that get two or three stars in SF are tasting-menu places aimed at international gastrotourists, the same sort of places you’d see on the Pellegrino lists.
The ratings in Hong Kong, even for Chinese restaurants, are more lax than ones in SFBA, which in turn are more lax than the ones in Paris.
A great example is the different ratings for L’Atelier de Joel Robuchon, which has basically the same dishes. In Hong Kong, its 3 stars. In New York, 2. In London, 1. In Paris, the original location, which has a higher standard than other worldwide locations, has 2, while another location has 1.
Hong Kong and Macau has more three Michelin starred restaurants than Paris. Seriously.
You’re not wrong, but they are also considered the best restaurants in the area by local foodies and critics.
That’s what I hear. I certainly feel that way for the one star Cantonese BBQ and wonton noodle joints.
The L’Atelier in Hong Kong also serves some of the dishes that are served at the 3 stars Robuchon au Dome though. I certainly wasn’t disappointed when I dined at the Hong Kong branch a few days after eating at Robuchon au Dome.
Gayot ranks Boulevard, Campton Place, Commonwealth, Delfina, La Folie, One Market, and Spruce at the same level as Benu and Quince.
Michael Bauer gave his top rating of four stars to La Folie, which gets one star from Michelin, and to Chez Panisse, which gets The Plate. His 3.5-star ratings include a much broader selection of restaurants than Michelin’s one- or two-star lists. He was narrow-minded and prejudiced in his own way, but he didn’t think fancy, expensive, tiny-portion tasting menus were superior to all other dining experiences.
Do any other critics attempt such a ranking? Bauer’s successor doesn’t believe in ratings. Neither does Eater.
Well, in a way it really is. Because of historical reasons, Chinese in LA ended up congregating in the SGV, while they dispersed in the Bay Area to Cupertino, Millbrae, Milpitas, Newark etc. etc. How Housing Discrimination Shaped Chinese Food in Los Angeles
How Michael bauer rated all our Michelin 3 star places:
The French Laundry: 4 Stars
Saison: 4 Stars
SingleThread 4 Stars
Benu: 4 Stars
Atelier Crenn: 4 Stars
Manresa: 4 Stars
Quince: 4 Stars
Meadowood: 4 Stars
Coi , Matthew Kirkley: 4 Stars
So yes, I would say Bauer considered Michelin three star places among the best restaurants in the Area. In fact, all nine three star places got Bauer’s highest rating–seemingly by default. Eight out of his ten final four stars were Michelin three star. In many cases, Michelin gave the recognition first.
Gayot is a pretty outdated guide (and stuffy French), but even it has Benu, Saison, and Quince amongst its top 10 SF restaurants, in addition to the two-star Baume. All ten of their selections have held at least one Michelin star.
And which SF restauarnts are up for James Beard Awards this year? Lo and behold it’s Benu (x2), Saison (x2), Quince, and Atelier Crenn! Indeed, all 4 three Michelin starred places.
How about worlds 50 best, maybe it’s better right? Their bay area picks in the top 100? Guess what, they all have 3 Michelin stars. Saison, Benu, The French Laundry, and SingleThread.
You think SF Chronicle’s new critic doesn’t buy into it? Follow her on social media? In a short 3 month period, she’s been to Quince, Benu, The French Laundry, Meadowood, SingleThread, Manresa–each multiple times.
Well, last resort–Eater must not buy into it right? Except in their 38 Essential American restaurants, only 2 are in San Francisco. Guess how many michelin stars they have? Three each for Benu and atelier Crenn.
So yes, I would say that Michelin’s top selections are also considered the best restaurants in the area by local, national, and international critics. I’m not sure which restaurants Michelin will give 3 stars in the rest of California, if any, but if it does, you can be darn sure it will be an incredible restaurant.