It’s Official: The Michelin Guide Is Coming to Philadelphia

The Michelin Man attending the release party for New York City’s Michelin Guide. / Photograph by Scott Wintrow/Getty Images For Michelin

For as long as I can remember, Philly’s restaurant industry has been talking about the Michelin Guide — that most vaunted, most esteemed, most controversial yardstick by which the subjective worth of restaurants might be measured. Started by brothers (and tire manufacturers) André and Édouard Michelin over a hundred years ago as a gimmick to encourage French people to drive more, it has become what is, arguably, the most important, most powerful restaurant rating guide in the world.

And now it is coming here. To Philly.

Later today, the Michelin Guide, in partnership with the Philadelphia Convention and Visitors Bureau, will announce that our fair metropolis (along with Boston) will now be included “in the newly-minted Michelin Guide Northeast Cities edition.” We will join Chicago, New York and Washington D.C. (which have been part of the Guide for years), and an announcement of the full list of selections for 2025 restaurants is expected at the annual Michelin Guide Northeast Cities Ceremony, to be held at some unspecified later date.

International director of the Michelin Guide Gwendal Poullennec said, “We are thrilled for Boston and Philadelphia to join the Michelin Guide Northeast Cities as both are premier destinations for gourmets to experience a rich diversity of cuisine and culinary history. The local passion, talent, and camaraderie in both Boston and Philadelphia is evident in their restaurant communities and the anonymous Inspectors look forward to spotlighting their unique experiences in both cities.”

And that’s great, but those Inspectors — the cadre of anonymous diners sent forth by the Guide to scout and report back on restaurants everywhere from Paris to Shanghai — are already out in the field, already making their visits to Philly’s restaurants, and already at work determining who is worthy of inclusion, and at what level. The Guide works on a three-star system: One star means “a very good restaurant” that’s absolutely worth visiting; two is “excellent” and worth making a detour for; and three stars denotes a restaurant that’s worth planning an entire trip around. Some restaurants are also presented with no stars; and more casual, local spots are given their own special ranking.

The first Michelin Guide was published in 1900. / Photograph by Apic/Getty Images

Historically speaking, the Guide’s process has been enviably rigorous. According to their methodology, restaurant (not chef, restaurant) rankings are “based on five universal criteria, to ensure each destination’s selection equity: 1) quality products; 2) the harmony of flavors; 3) the mastery of cooking techniques; 4) the voice and personality of the chef as reflected in the cuisine; 5) consistency between each visit and throughout the menu.” And with each restaurant being visited several times throughout the year by different inspectors, each submitting independent assessments, that’s a solid system. But Philly’s inclusion in the Northeast Cities guide is no guarantee of what kind of coverage we’ll receive, or how well any particular restaurants will be ranked.

Add to this the Guide’s historical (and almost existential) bias in favor of fine dining in a historical moment when restaurants, as a species, are under collective threat from increasing prices and labor costs, and decreasing customer counts in the face of wild economic uncertainty, AND the fact that international tourism coming into the U.S. is taking a major hit because of … well, everything currently going on in this Black Mirror-ass excuse for a functioning democracy, and yeah. It’s a weird time to be having these sorts of discussions.

Still, the Michelin Guide is a huge deal. And the announcement of its arrival in Philly is absolutely a part of our ever-evolving, thousand-part conversation about what our food scene is, what it isn’t, and what it might become. And while I have long-held issues with rating systems in general and the Michelin Guide in particular, I also deeply respect the hustle of what Michelin has always tried to do. It is an entire global system built for trying to get more people to experience more restaurants and to have the best meals of their lives no matter where they are. And now, Philly is going to be part of that conversation. So yes, I’m excited. More voices, more attention, more conversation — I love that for us.

And I can’t wait to see who’s going to be included among the inaugural class of Philly restaurants. If anyone wants to start laying odds, y’all know where to find me.