The Michelin Guides have been published by the French tire company Michelin since 1900. They were designed as a guide to tell drivers about eateries they recommended to visit and to subtly sponsor their tires, by encouraging drivers to use their cars more and therefore need to replace the tires as they wore out. Over time, the stars that were given out started to become more valuable.[1]
Multiple anonymous Michelin inspectors visit the restaurants several times. They rate the restaurants on five criteria: "quality of products", "mastery of flavor and cooking techniques", "the personality of the chef represented in the dining experience", "value for money", and "consistency between inspectors' visits".[1][2] Inspectors have at least ten years of expertise and create a list of popular restaurants supported by media reports, reviews, and diner popularity. If they reach a consensus, Michelin awards restaurants from one to three stars based on its evaluation methodology: One star means "high-quality cooking, worth a stop", two stars signify "excellent cooking, worth a detour", and three stars denote "exceptional cuisine, worth a special journey".[3] The stars are not permanent and restaurants are constantly being re-evaluated. If the criteria are not met, the restaurant will lose its stars.[1]
The TorontoMichelin Guide first launched in September 2022.[4] The guide was initiated through a marketing partnership between Destination Toronto and Michelin, similar to other cities the guide has entered in recent years.[5] In 2024, the geographic coverage was expanded to include the communities and regions that surround Toronto, with the guide officially being renamed by Michelin to "Toronto and Region".[6]
The guide was originally planned to launch in 2020, but it was delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic.[5]
As of the 2024 guide, there are 16 restaurants in Greater Toronto with a Michelin-star rating,[7] a rating system used by the Michelin Guide to grade restaurants based on their quality.
The launch of the guide has attracted critique from various outlets including BBC News, suggesting that the guide is not representative of the diversity of Toronto's food scene,[5] or that the city doesn't need outside recognition.[5] The Toronto Star argued that the inaugural 2022 guide failed to capture the full diversity of Toronto restaurants, being overly represented by Japanese cuisine and downtown restaurants.[12] The Star also publishes its own alternative restaurant guide that it argues better captures Toronto's food scene, released around the same time as the annual Michelin Guide update.[13][14]
Others criticized the Michelin Guide for overlooking suburban Toronto, particularly Scarborough, which is often regarded as having the city's most diverse food scene.[15] In both 2022 and 2023, only one Scarborough restaurant received recognition, earning a Michelin Bib Gourmand designation.[15] In 2024, Michelin expanded its geographic coverage beyond the core city, including restaurants in suburban areas and extending as far as the Niagara Region, Simcoe County, and the Grey Highlands,[16] areas typically not considered to be a part of the Greater Toronto Area.
