The Michelin Guide is a restaurant guide published by the French tire company, Michelin. It was first published in 1900, and since then has become one of the most sought-after awards for restaurants.
The guide awards one to three stars to restaurants that demonstrate excellence in food, service, and atmosphere. A single star signifies “a very good restaurant in its category”, two stars indicate “excellent cooking, worth a detour” and three stars signify “exceptional cuisine, worth a special journey”.
Achieving a Michelin star is incredibly difficult and requires an immense amount of dedication from the chefs and owners of the restaurant. It is not only an honour but also a great boost to business. However, once awarded it can be taken away just as easily as it was gained.
When awarding or removing stars, Michelin takes into account many factors including quality of ingredients used, creativity of dishes served and overall consistency. If a restaurant fails to meet their standards they can remove the star or downgrade it from three stars to two. It is rare that they take away a star but if they are not satisfied with the quality of dishes served or with customer feedback they do reserve the right to do so.
Michelin Star Removal Process
The process for Michelin star removal starts when inspectors make several visits to the restaurant without informing them as part of their mystery dining program. During these visits they assess several criteria such as service quality, food quality and atmosphere. Based on their findings they decide whether or not the restaurant should retain their star or have it taken away.
If after their assessment they find that the restaurant does not meet their standards for keeping a Michelin star then they will inform them in writing about their decision. This letter contains detailed feedback about why their star has been removed such as inconsistencies in food quality or lack of creativity in dishes served.
Once this letter is received by the restaurant owners they have 30 days to appeal against this decision if desired. Usually restaurants do not appeal as there are strict criteria which must be met in order for them to retain their star.
Conclusion
To conclude, while it is difficult to achieve a Michelin star it can be taken away just as easily if the standards set by Michelin are not met.
The process for removal begins when inspectors visit restaurants without informing them during which time they assess multiple criteria about service quality and food quality among others. If after assessment it is found that these standards are not met then Michelin will inform them of their decision with detailed feedback about why their star has been removed. Restaurants have 30 days to appeal if desired but usually do not due to strict criteria which must be met in order for them to retain their star.