More stars, fewer restaurants

THE Michelin Guide 2016 has nine fewer restaurants than last year, but 54 more stars.

Its launch has been accompanied by a photography exhibition of portraits of France’s three-star chefs by Stéphane de Bourgies. The photos will be on public display at the annual Taste Paris food show from February 11-14.

This year’s guide has a new category to add to the three-star system and the Bib Gourmand (for good three-course meals under €36 in Paris and €32 elsewhere) - L’Assiette is awarded to restaurants that serve a good standard of food but have not yet reached the levels of a star or cost of a Bib Gourmand.

Paris has two new three-star restaurants: Alain Ducasse‘s restaurant at the Plaza Athénée Hotel and Christian Le Squer’s Le V at the George V Hotel.

The capital also has five of the ten new two-star restaurants: Mathieu Pacaud’s Histoires, Jean-François Piège’s Le Grand Restaurant and Christophe Moret’s L’Abeille at the Shangri-La Hotel. Jérôme Banctel wins for both his Sylvestre at Hotel Thoumieux and Le Gabriel at La Réserve.

New two star restaurants in France:
Bordeaux, La Grande Maison – Joël Robuchon
Colmar, JY’S - Jean-Yves Schillinger
Megève, 1920 - Julien Gatillon
Mougins, Paloma - Nicolas Decherchi
Wingen-sur-Moder, Villa René Lalique - Jean-Georges Klein

Forty-two restaurants receive their first star including Gordon Ramsay’s Le Pressoir d’Argent in Bordeaux. Seven are located in the capital, the rest scattered around the country.

ALSACE, CHAMPAGNE-ARDENNE, LORRAINE
Baerenthal - L’Arnsbourg
Strasbourg - Au Crocodile

AQUITAINE, LIMOUSIN, POITOU-CHARENTES
Massignac - Dyades
Saint-Émilion - Les Belles Perdrix (Château Troplong-Mondot)
Bordeaux - Le Pressoir d’Argent – Gordon Ramsay

AUVERGNE, RHÔNE-ALPES
Annecy - L’Esquisse
Bagnols - 1217 (Château de Bagnols),
Lyon - Le Passe-Temps
Lyon - PRaiRiaL
Machilly - Le Refuge des Gourmets
St-Martin-sur-la-Chambre - Le Clocher des Pères
Thonon-les-Bains - Raphaël Vionnet
Venosc / Les Deux-Alpes - Le P’tit Polyte (Chalet Mounier Hotel)

BURGUNDY, FRANCHE-COMTÉ
Beaune - Le Carmin
Dijon - La Maison des Cariatides

BRITTANY
Sainte-Marine - Les Trois Rochers (Villa Tri Men)
La Gouesnière - La Gouesnière (Maison Tirel Guérin)
Porspoder - Le Château de Sable
Quimper- Allium
Roscoff - Rackham

CORSICA
Belgodère - I Salti

LANGUEDOC-ROUSSILLON, MIDI-PYRÉNÉES
Nîmes - Jérôme Nutile (Le Mas de Boudan)
Toulouse - PY-R
Toulouse/Castanet-Tolosan - La Table des Merville

ÎLE-DE-FRANCE
Paris 2nd Saturne
Paris 7th Nakatani
Paris 8th Lucas Carton
Paris 15th Neige d’Été
Paris 16th Hexagone
Paris 16th Pages
Versailles (78) La Table du 11

NORD-PAS-DE-CALAIS, PICARDIE
Lille - La Table (Clarance Hotel)
Valenciennes/Raismes - La Grignotière

NORMANDY
Argentan - La Renaissance
Caen - Initial
Caudebec-en-Caux - Manoir de Rétival

LOIRE
Angers - Le Favre d’Anne

PROVENCE-ALPES-CÔTE-D’AZUR
Juan-les-Pins - La Passagère
Nice - Jan
Gordes - Pèir
Tourrettes - Faventia
Forcalquier/Mane - Le Cloître

The Michelin France Guide will be available from February 5, 2016.