Michelin Announces 2018 Stars for France

Michelin, the tire company-restaurant guidebook purveyor, is back in its country of origin to debut the 2018 stars for France. Last year, the guide included a record-setting 616 restaurants with at least one Michelin star. In 2018, there are 54 new restaurants with Michelin stars, including two new restaurants with three stars, Michelin’s highest honor, for a total of 28 three-star restaurants.

Chef Christophe Bacquié’s restaurant at the Castellet Hotel in Var, France now has three Michelin stars, as does La Maison des Bois from chef Marc Veyrat in Manigod. This is the third time Veyrat has won Michelin’s top honor and marks a comeback for the chef, who gave up cooking and his stars after a skiing accident. It’s also a comeback for the restaurant, which suffered a fire in 2015 and was among the two-star selections last year after it reopened with a self-sufficient farm.

Le Suquet à Laguiole is the only restaurant that fell from the three-star lineup in 2018. In September, chef Sébastien Bras requested that Michelin take back the restaurant’s stars because of the “huge pressure” to maintain them. And for the first time since chefs at Michelin-starred restaurants began publicly renouncing their stars, Michelin granted that request.

There are also five new two-star restaurants in the guide this year and 50 new one-star spots. Michelin’s controversial preference for French and Japanese cuisine is, unsurprisingly, still apparent. Several of the new two- and one-star selections feature Japanese flavors, including Takao Takano in Lyon and Au 14 Février in Saint-Amour with two stars; and Paris restaurants Pertinence and Montee, both with one star. Also notable, if unsurprising: Just a few women appeared on the stage during today’s ceremony honoring the newly starred chefs.

See the press release and the full list of France’s Michelin stars below: