The Lowdown: Michelin 2023
Are you sure this isn’t actually a Michelin tyre event?
We’re sure. Michelin confirmed last month that its star revelation ceremony for Great Britain & Ireland would take place at Silverstone on Monday 27 March. It heralds a return to physical events in the UK for the little red book, which has announced its new distinctions and awards digitally for the past two years because of the Coronavirus pandemic.
What can we expect on the night?
Probably a lot of industry folk clamouring to get selfies with Bibendum; plenty of champagne; and lots of smiling chefs as Michelin unveils its new stars. Will we see a new three-star restaurant? What will the new one-star restaurants be? We wait with bated breath to find out. Alongside the new star distinctions, the ceremony will also announce the new Green stars – which highlight restaurants at the forefront of the industry when it comes to their sustainable practices – and other special awards covering a variety of categories announced.
Any predictions?
Absolutely In terms of the big guns, our bet is on Alex Dilling at Hotel Café Royal jumping straight in with two stars; and Brett Graham’s The Ledbury regaining the two stars it had prior to its prolonged, pandemic-enforced closure in 2020. In London, the stars could be aligned for Angelo Sato’s Humble Chicken and Restaurant St Barts after meals that impressed us this year. And, off the back of his Cartmel flagship L'Enclume picking up three stars last year, Simon Rogan’s Aulis London could also be in line for a star – Charlie Tayler’s cooking certainly warrants one in our book. Outside of the capital, Peter Sanchez-Iglesias’ Casa in Bristol is surely in line to get a star; and we reckon Dan Cox’s recently launched farm-to-table restaurant Crocadon could pick up both a Green star and a regular star.
Lots to look out for then. Do we expect any restaurants to lose stars?
We’re not ones to tempt fate in that way, but it’s not off the cards. During the pandemic, Michelin appeared to adopt a lenient attitude towards taking stars away from restaurants – in the Michelin Guide Great Britain & Ireland 2022 stars were removed from 20 restaurants, the majority due to closures. However, the recent downgrade of Guy Savoy's Monnaie de Paris restaurant and the eponymous Restaurant Christopher Coutanceau in La Rochelle – both from three stars to two stars – in the 2023 Michelin Guide France will no doubt have chefs feeling even more uneasy than usual during the runup to this year’s announcement.
Will any of the awards be revealed in advance of Monday?
As is always the case, the Michelin Bib Gourmands, awarded to restaurants 'offering particularly good quality, good value cooking' have been announced in the lead up to the star revelation ceremony. Twenty new restaurants have been recognised with a Bib this year including Luke Farrell’s Plaza Khao Gaeng in London, The Flint House in Brighton, and the recently launched Root Wells in Somerset.
How can anyone not invited to the ceremony get involved on the night?
The star revelation ceremony will be broadcast live via the Michelin Guide YouTube channel. Prior to that the new selection will subsequently be found on the Michelin Guide’s website and mobile app, which displays for free the restaurants and hotels recommended by the Michelin Guide.
