FAQs for DC’s First Michelin Guide

The acclaimed Michelin Guide announced in May that it will launch a guide for Washington, DC on October 13, 2016. The DC guide will be Michelin’s fourth U.S. guide, joining the U.S. cities New York, Chicago, and San Francisco and joining the ranks of international cities like Paris, London, and Tokyo.
 
At a press conference in June, Michelin announced that it had already deployed its inspectors in the District to prepare for the guide. Many restaurateurs, chefs, and members of the RAMW community have come to us with questions regarding this process and what it means for Washington, DC.
 
RAMW worked with contacts at Michelin to compile an FAQ to answer some of these questions.
 
WHAT IS THE MICHELIN GUIDE?
The Michelin Guide generally refers to the red guidebooks that the tire company, Michelin, launched in 1900 to encourage people to take road trips to interesting destinations and restaurants. There are guidebooks for 27 countries and only 9 individual city guides. The Washington Post reported: “Michelin previously published guides in Los Angeles and Las Vegas, but it ceased evaluating both cities in 2010 for economic and geographical reasons, a Michelin spokesman said.” Michelin also produces a series of green travel guides to destinations across the globe.
 
WHY IS MICHELIN LAUNCHING ITS 4TH GUIDE IN WASHINGTON, DC?
Michael Ellis, International Director for Michelin Guides, spoke at Michelin’s press conference at the National Press Club in June 2016. He said, “DC was a logical choice. It’s a very cosmopolitan city. It has a growing and thriving food scene.” Other criteria that contributed to the decision were the diversity of cuisines and the city’s stature — which Ellis said makes it “of interest to the Michelin group.”
 
WHAT IS THE PROCESS MICHELIN FOLLOWS TO LAUNCH A NEW GUIDE?
Michelin states that they use the same process in every city around the world. They have a team of anonymous inspectors in every country and city where the guides exist or are soon to launch. For a new guide location, they employ a number of existing inspectors from other areas in America as well as some from international markets. Michelin does not share the number of inspectors on their payroll, but they say that there are “enough of them to do the job.”
 
The inspectors have been dining in Washington, DC since the Fall of 2015 and were inspecting through the end of Summer 2016. Restaurants that opened up through the summer may be included.
 
The inspectors are always on the beat. They are reading dining reviews and articles, listening to what people in the food industry are saying, and following trends to determine where to dine as they cannot physically go to every single restaurant and eatery in the city. They first narrow the list down to those that fit some basic standards of quality to be considered for the guide, but the list includes many types of cuisine, all different price points, and categories of restaurant from very casual to fine dining. The inspectors are tasked with visiting and dining out at every type of restaurant on the list and they are eating out three times per day, every meal, during the inspection period.
 
They are required to dine as a patron would. They have to wait in line, they have to make reservations, and they are required to pay their bill.  There is always anonymity. The inspectors never announce that they are coming to dine or make themselves known when they are there. They may dine alone or with other guests. This has been Michelin’s process since 1900.
 
WHO ARE THE INSPECTORS?
The inspectors are full-time Michelin employees who go through extensive training and an interview and selection process.  It is an elite group of individuals who have extensive education and experience working in the culinary world. Most of them are chefs themselves, studied at world-renowned culinary institutes, and many operated their own restaurants. The inspectors come from diverse backgrounds and cuisines and many inspectors will visit the same restaurant to avoid any bias. Each individual inspector will, however, only dine at a restaurant once in a year to preserve anonymity.
 
WHAT IS THE INSPECTION CRITERIA THEY ARE JUDGING?
Michelin inspectors are looking for certain inherent standards, but are ultimately judged on the food alone. Price, décor, service, and location are NOT considered as part of the inspection, though Bib Gourmand restaurants do consider price as a factor for inclusion in the guide.
 
There are two categories of recognition: Stars and Bib Gourmand
 
Stars: 1, 2, or 3 stars:
1 star is “a very good restaurant in its category”
2 stars is “excellent cooking, worth a detour”
3 stars is “exceptional quality, worth a special journey”
 
Bib Gourmand:
Since 1955, the guide has also highlighted restaurants offering "exceptional good food at moderate prices," a feature called "Bib Gourmand". They must offer menu items priced below a maximum determined by local economic standards.  For DC, this will include restaurants where patrons can enjoy a full meal for under $40 per person. The Bib Gourmand also generally includes more casual restaurants.
 
While the stars carry with them a lot of excitement and respect, just being included in the guide is an accomplishment.

HOW WILL THEY DECIDE WHAT RESTAURANTS ARE INCLUDED IN THE INAUGURAL GUIDE?
Michelin has not revealed how many restaurants will be included in the first edition of the DC guide. They did say that the price points range from inexpensive to very expensive.
 
For the first edition, the guide will include only restaurants in the District of Columbia. Michelin has stated that that will expand to the surrounding metropolitan region for future editions.
 
WHEN WILL RESTAURANTS FIND OUT IF THEY ARE INCLUDED IN THE GUIDE?
Michelin will reach out directly to chefs at restaurants that received one or more stars in the inaugural guide in the week before the guide is released. Once the chefs are notified, a press release will go live announcing the restaurants who received stars.
 
The guide will be officially released on October 13, 2016. This may be the printed guide for sale, or may only be a digital version of the guide with a printed version to follow. Michelin representatives said this was still to be determined as of mid-September 2016.
 
IF A RESTAURANT IS NOT INCLUDED IN THE FIRST EDITION, CAN THEY BE ADDED IN FUTURE EDITIONS?
Yes. Once a guide is launched, inspectors review restaurants annually, adding locations to the guide and changing rankings as necessary. Based on the date of the DC guide launch, the guide will update each year around the month of October.
 
Have questions? Email RAMW at info@ramw.org
 

 
 
Read articles about Michelin’s DC launch:

Washington Post: DC’s food scene gets a prestigious boost: Michelin inspection (and stars)
 
Washingtonian: The Michelin Guide is Coming to DC in October
 
Washington City Paper: Michelin's Arrival Could Help Solve A Serious Problem
 
Washington City Paper: Will DC Restaurants Still Sing Kumbaya After Michelin Drops?