Award winners share the stage at Michelin Guide Ceremony Dubai 2023
India shines at the 2023 Michelin Awards for Dubai held at the luxurious new Royal Atlantis Hotel, with Tresind Studio winning two stars this year.
The iconic guide, seen as the Oscars of the food industry, was launched in France in the early 1900s and is now in 41 destinations, having been unveiled in Dubai last year. A total of 14 restaurants won stars this year, of which 11 got one star.
restaurant with two michelin stars
In addition to Tresind, two stars each were awarded to restaurateurs Nico Romito and Stay By Yannick Aleño, who retained their stars from last year.
Onkar Valve of Avtara, which focuses on vegetarian fine dining and describes its cuisine as ‘soulful Indian’, won the Young Chef Award, given to a chef who stands out for his strong culinary personality. Avatara also won its first Michelin star with Dinner by Heston Blumenthal and Moonrise, which were added to the list this year.
The event also recognized three restaurants committed to more sustainable gastronomy with the Green Star, which was awarded to Loewe, Boca and Tible.
The guide is known for its famously anonymous inspectors who travel the world and dine at establishments multiple times to determine whether they are eligible to receive or retain a star. According to the guide, stars have a significant impact on success: a single star signifies excellence, while three stars, the highest award, indicate restaurants that are exceptional.
Gwendal Poullennec, International Director, Michelin Guide
The guide’s international director, Gwendal Poulenc, who joined the event via a video call, explained how the guide has so far selected 16,000 restaurants worldwide, of which 3,300 have stars and about 140 are actually I have three stars. As Michelin expands its footprint, it says it is also recruiting new inspectors, all of whom are food industry professionals who have completed three years in the field. They currently come from 20 nationalities and travel the world in search of memorable meals.
Issam Kazim, CEO of the Dubai Corporation for Tourism and Commerce Marketing, which last year collaborated with Michelin to launch the guide to the city, said it was an important way to show how cosmopolitan the city’s food is. Dubai is the guide’s first Middle-Eastern destination, Elisabeth Boucher-Anselin, Michelin Experience director of communications, said it has nearly 13,000 restaurants and cafes: “It is a culinary hub, and an important milestone in our culinary journey. “
Indian attendees raised the question of when Michelin plans to launch the Indian version. While Gwendal Poulenc did not give any concrete plans, he did reveal that “India is part of the culinary destinations being explored by the inspectors,” and added, “Today India is very well represented in Dubai with talented chefs. should also be recognized and that’s definitely something we’re working on. It’s just a start.”