The number of top-ranked restaurants in California continues to fall
IN THE last several weeks, a handful of big businesses have announced they’re leaving California, namely Chevron and Elon Musk’s SpaceX and X.
Likewise, the state’s restaurants have taken a little hit in the latest Michelin Guide release. The number of starred dining rooms has continued to drop; there are now 85, compared with 87 in 2023 and 89 in 2022.
Nothing changed at the top of the list: there are still six 3-star restaurants, the highest ranking, designated as “exceptional cuisine.” Five of those top-of-the-line spots are in Northern California, including SingleThread Farms in Healdsburg and San Francisco’s Atelier Crenn. “With each Guide reveal, we have the opportunity to come together with our colleagues throughout California to celebrate the advancement of gastronomy in our great state,” said William Bradley, chef and director of Addison in San Diego, the only three-star restaurant in southern California, after the announcement.
This year’s list features three new two-star spots, serving “excellent cuisine.” The Scandi-accented Sons & Daughters in San Francisco features a $295 tasting menu, with dishes such as cured trout in fish bone broth, while Aubergine, in scenic Carmel, has an internationally influenced menu and a 4,500-bottle-strong wine list. Both were upgraded from one star.
A new showing on this year’s list is the reopened Vespertine in Los Angeles, where chef Jordan Kahn has diners move across floors over the course of a meal. The restaurant also received a Green star, Michelin’s designation for an eco-minded establishment.
It was a good night for Mr. Kahn. His live-fire-focused Meteora was one of seven new one-star spots (a “very good restaurant”) in California. Another is San Francisco’s 7 Adams, from chefs Serena and David Fisher, who manage to serve a five-course, Cal-Italian menu in San Francisco for $87. There are 66 one-star spots this year; last year there were 69.
More notable than the new additions, though, were the places that dropped, particularly in Los Angeles. N/naka, chef Niki Nakayama’s inspired Japanese restaurant, may have garnered a cult following, but dropped from two stars to one; so did the revered Sushi Ginza Onodera, one of the few outposts of the famed Tokyo counter.
“It’s important for restaurants to maintain consistent quality,” said the chief inspector for Michelin Guide North America, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of his job. “If a restaurant’s culinary standards are observed to no longer be aligned with its current distinction, this could impact their retention the following year.” He added that the decision to demote a restaurant comes only after multiple visits.
In fact, in years past, having the word “sushi” in your restaurant name practically guaranteed a star — last year eight spots had sushi in their title, and at least one star to their credit. This year it’s down to five. Besides the demotion of Ginza Onodera, places that fell off the starred list entirely include the revered eight-seat Sushi Yoshizumi in San Mateo and Sushi Takodoro in San Diego; both specialize in Edomae sushi, a traditional style, with fish flown in from Japan, particularly Tokyo Bay.
Another famed restaurant that suffered in this year’s rankings is Gary Danko, a Bay Area institution almost since it opened in 1999; it’s held a Michelin star since they were first awarded in San Francisco in 2008. This year, that star was taken away.
In Los Angeles, a couple of high-profile spots have closed or are closing and were cut from the list. Earlier this year, Walter and Margarita Manzke shut down their lauded, extravagant tasting-menu spot Manzke, citing financial issues. Later this year, star chef Curtis Stone will transform his small, stylish dining room Maude into a bakery, the Pie Shop; in a statement he said it was to make room “for new endeavors.” These closures come as the state is dealing with a $27-billion-plus deficit, driven in part by the exodus of some tech jobs.
California restaurateurs have been hard hit by increased operating costs from rent to food costs and especially labor. In January, the state’s minimum wage was raised to $16 per hour, one of the highest in the country; fast food workers’ wages were set at a minimum of $20 per hour, making salaries even more competitive. In the Los Angeles area, there’s also been an ongoing impact from last year’s long-lasting Hollywood strikes.
It’s not just high-end tasting-menu spots that were hit on this year’s list; in fact, the news was worse for lower priced spots. At the event, Michelin also announced its Bib Gourmand, or cheap eats picks. There are 132; a year ago there were 142.
Michelin has been giving out stars statewide since 2019; this year’s awards took place at the Ritz-Carlton in Half Moon Bay.
A month ago, the guide announced it’s latest expansion, an inaugural guide in five Texas cities — Austin, Dallas, Fort Worth, Houston, and San Antonio. A representative for Houston First, the city’s tourism board, revealed it was paying the guide $270,000 for three years of coverage, according to Eater.
As it happens, Chevron, SpaceX, and X are all headed to Texas. — Bloomberg
