THANK YOU for this video MatPat! As a Colombian-American who loves cooking, the fact that Latin America as a whole has so few Michelin stars always irritated me, since we have such wide diversity and flavor in our cuisines! I always felt that there was a European bias with these reviews. Don’t get me wrong, I love European cuisine, but there needs to be more love for Latin America and our amazing dishes. I’m sure there’s a a Michelin-worthy Arepa out there! PS I feel like Papas Chorreadas would be something Michelin reviewers would like, but maybe that’s just me lol. Maybe they’d appreciate a bandeja paisa?
OMG YES. Im Colombian too and like there are so many good restaurants here that deserve some recognition. Its kinda sad to see how something as mundane as food critcing is still under eurocentric ideals
I think we would benefit from having different rating for different cuisines, it is hard to rate chinese food agains european food for example because they are very different in their flavours. So i think that the idea of a generalized rating is wrong, there should be per cuisine ratings by different critics.
As someone who has worked in the restaurant industry a long time and who deeply loves food and this industry I've always believed that if you have a Michelin star that you earned it but if you don't have one doesn't mean you don't deserve it
I don't have a huge sample size to draw from, but every experience in even a 1 Michelin star restaurant has been amazing. So yes, it's a guide to good food, not an exclusive list of good food. After all taste, especially the litteral taste of food is super subjective. Eg heat and spice levels that make SE Asian food delicious for some, make it inedible for others. When judging, the best you can ever do is try to quantify how well executed a specific idea is.
@@NeoHellPoet Good point. There is something like regional taste and a French guide is probably the best guide for French people or if you like -French food- the same food as the French you are very well equipped with the Micheline guide.
As a french trained chef whos been lucky enough to eat at several michelin star restaurants, I can say that the food in these restaurants are often very similar in vibe, and the ambiance of the restaurant is always very intense, you have a ton of waiters over your shoulder, everything seems so fancy and part of a protocol. I've realized with time I much rather enjoy a chill atmosphere, were you can hear people buzzing and laughing! Some of the BEST meals of my life have actually been very cheap, in fun, authentic restaurants!
@@anintrovertonyoutube5271 This! I don't want to "work" or feel like I'm "working" for my meals. The fancy life is something I guess, and depending on the place, the taste can be phenominal, but dressing up and having yo not only behave but access my "hardcor proper persona" is not something I ever look foward too. Good food, and good people I can be myself around though... 🤌
I have a friend who worked in the kitchen at a Michelin starred restaurant, and she told me the biggest part of earning a star was non-food related. It was how you go above and beyond with the administrative, organization and presentation of the restaurant itself. Obviously you can't serve bad food, but the process of earning the star was more about how much extra you're willing to go to make your restaurant LOOK like a Michelin restaurant.
This is actually pretty dead-on accurate. I worked at a few restaurants in one of the top hotels in Vegas, and it was pretty well known among that crowd that if you wanted to qualify for a star, your front of house service matters even more than the food.
that "above and beyond" thing you're speaking of is called SERVICE and it's not a mirage or trick to tickle the egos of associations that hand out rewards.
@@scottduke2809 dude... C'mon... Service is not what anyone is talking about and you know it. You just want to complain about today's society and sound above-it-all.
@@jefftalley7036 not at all. i work in a Michilan recognized restaurant and the knowledgable service is absolutely critical. also, even with a latin american focused menu french techniques and understanding is a major factor as it has been as literally every restaurant i have worked in over the past 30 years, and it’s becoming MORE so every year. this has nothing to do with complaining, rather setting the record a bit more inline with reality.
There is a restaurant in my area that actually turned down the Michelin Star. They said it brings a lot of stress for the restaurant and the chefs to actually keep it and it jacks up the prices which scares a lot of customers away. Makes sense when you think about it.
@@rustyhowe3907 that's basically what a lot of big cities have done in the usa, and places like vermont. Everyone is a foodie, everyone thinks their recipes are special! You can't get out of a restaurant for less than 20 bucks for a burger and fries And then pay carbon taxes, $15 minimum wage on top of tips. I know a restaurant in Vermont that charges for napkins. So needless to say their recycled bathroom paper towel dispenser is always empty
Matpat sponsorships on youtube are always creative and funny....but having him stuck on the road in the middle of a road trip with a busted tire, only to be approached by a french man who has memorized a commerical for a insurance comapny with a biritsh gecko as it's mascot is top quality work.
Nah it annoyed me personally. Y'all only have one french joke and it's not even funny. Are you even aware that french people don't actually talk like that in reality ?
There's a huge friendship between France and Japan that's gone on for ages, to the point that in the late 90's each country spent a year celebrating each other's culture. Even if the Japanese restaurants getting stars hadn't sold French food, it'd still be a case of giving a best friend a pat on the back
And when the former Japanese emperor, Akihito, became emperor in 1989, each foreign head of state / head of government that was invited to the ceremony was alloted 15 minutes of discussion with the new emperor... but for the French president François Mitterrand, it was two and a half hours.
Disagree. This episode is so bias AWAY from France. USA isn't exactly known for it's restaurant. More known for it's fast food. Normally I'm with you, I agree with Matpat. But I feel like he's holding some sort of grudge. (Japan is basically known for they're food. Italy has pasta, pizza ect. And German has a lot more different types of sausages then anywhere else in the world. If anything I'm surprised England wasn't on the list, but meh. America definitely wouldn't be. Stop making bias results please Matpat. Uncool.
@@_theknighthawk_7018 Counterpoint, there's been a huge rivalry between France and Britain that's lasted centuries, so an absence of British restaurants from the list would be expected if the list had a French bias. In addition, China, Thailand and India all have iconic culinary styles largely ignored by this list, so the elevation of Japan makes it the odd country out in its region of the world
France even helped the shogunate try to overthrow the emperor and one of the most famous foreign samurai was a french guy who just fell in love with the shogunate and wanted to become a samurai
@@_theknighthawk_7018 people are assuming he said they were biased when he pointed out that it's just not a purely objective test - and this may be because of the reviewer pool regional imbalances
I've worked at a michelin star restaurant. It has nothing to do with taste. You're required to obviously serve quality food, but it's mostly about the degree to which your silverware is polished (and good luck getting a star with stainless steel). Your staff basically has to go the extra 500 miles, and culturally speaking the Japanese just have a talent for doing just that for any guest.
The anime Food Wars literally has an arc about this. A new headmaster wants them to focus only on fine dining and due to the French bias in Fine Dining he specifically calls out Japanese street food as lower class. This show actually lead me to study more non-western cooking.
I wish I had the money to get the managa for that. I despise the show. The esposodes themseleves are only like 8-10min each, once you cut out their reactions everytime they take a bite.
@@jamhamtime1878 I was gunna say the same thing, I don't think he's french biased at all, just poor food biased. Japan has a long history of super fancy, high class, expensive food that is also local and traditionally Japanese, especially in seafood, and the show and Azami look to those just as highly.
I personally always rely on the advice "go where the locals go" or "if it's dinner time and it's busy, it's probably worth the wait". I also always look at price points too, but you gotta do what you gotta do these days :)
That's usually good advice. I seek out the hole in the wall places that serve great food but don't get the love and praise that the fancy looking places do.
@Jimmy at my home town there's a bridge that's usually used to dive into the water by us locals because we know it and we know when to use it, so if another place has locals doing the same there's probably a reason
One time I was coming down with a cold, absolutely starving, and had been travelling for hours. When I arrived at my destination I checked google maps and tripadvisor to see where the "good" food places were and they were all crazy expensive and the food just didn't look good to me. Then I noticed, out of the corner of my eye, this tiny little Cantonese place with an unassuming sign outside and a flickering light, but it was completely packed with customers and they were all Asian (which lbr is a good sign when it comes to Asian restaurants). I went inside and ordered a huge bowl of congee, a plate of char siu bao, and some kind of veggies side dish. The people working there were super nice, gave me a free ice cold bottle of coke and a free dessert, asked me where I was headed and gave me directions, and even let me use their staff-only bathroom. It was one of the best meals I've had while travelling but only had one review (in Chinese) online. It clearly wouldn't get any attention from "respectable restaurant critics" and this made me pause and reconsider the value I'd been placing on restaurant reviews and the people I was giving my money to. Ever since, I've sought out the places where the locals eat, the places that are friendly but not grovelling for a good instagram post, the places that appreciate their customers and take pride in their wholesome food. It's been a much better experience over all and I've saved a lot of money!
This is something that directly translates to the few-and-far-between Michelin Stars outside Europe. While watching Netflix's "Chef's Table" I noticed the trend that - no matter what Michelin Star rated restauranteur they focused on in any part of the world, and no matter what regional food the restaurant focused on - the head chef ALWAYS got their start in France. ALWAYS. Super sus
as other commenters have mentioned, what distinguishes michelin star restuarants is not the food, its about the service. Michelin reviewers base their opinions on French service standards. it makes sense that a chef who started off in France knows how to cater to those metrics.
@@lakoeck That or you're so full of yourselves that you think that presentation makes up for the fact that your food is quite frankly (no pun intended) MEDIOCRE.
yeah. And since I know best food in the world comes from countries that are more biodiverse since they have more diversity of plants which make them have more combination of delicious food, these countries are tipically near the ecuator and are the ones that actually ranks better in people choosing their best cuisines.
As a french I always thought the Michelin star was a national standard for high quality food that also awarded a few restaurants abroad but I never thought they marketed themselves as the international reference for food...
They do and it’s honestly why American chefs “hate” the French. They don’t but the negative effects of those ridiculous stars have ended chefs careers for pointless reasons
@Peter McCallister The thing is, though, Google's rankings are based on individual feedback, not an arbitrary panel of Google's own judges. If a restaurant has a low rating, it's because the majority of people who've reviewed that restaurant didn't enjoy their experience, not just because of cultural differences being lost on a judge from another part of the world, or because it doesn't meet the standards of what Google itself considers a "good restaurant".
@@petermccallister8762 I am so confused by your comments. Michelin stars seem like a universal standard for food or at least are advertised as such but when you look at it more closely, you can see an extreme bias. It's fine to like French food and eating at those restaurants, but if they have a reputation for choosing the "best" restaurants when they are really selecting a very selective cuisine that doesn't represent the "best" food, it can get confusing
@@AFUNW americans hate french in general. Maybe chefs more but come on america is not known for its good food. Your food culture is basically non-existant, you have invented fast food, sodas and that’s all. Every other country have better food, especially countries like france, italy or japan who worked on their food for centuries
@@lakoeck😂😂😂😂 Omg, you lack any sense of self awareness at all. You make this sweeping statement that Americans hate the French...then proceed to generalise and stereotype. It's absolute nonsense.
As an ex-professional chef (but current chef to all my friends and fam) of a Michelin three star restaurant that was on the Bay Area's Top 100 for the three years I worked there, I'm so happy you made this. (Pssssst, even though it was a Japanese/American restaurant where I used to work, we used a lot of French style cooking techniques per "Chefs" ord--ah--request. Wonder why we got so many food critics so early after the grand opening...)
It may as well be about conspiracy theories... Not long ago, the familiar theory channel logo was shown with a purple down right corner while Editor Dan talked about conspiracies...
This made me realize that there are no michelin star restaurants in all of Africa, even in Morocco where there are some extremely high quality restaurants that even Gordon ate at and blew his mind. And they mainly serve Moroccan food with a small western twist mainly in plating.
The reason there are no michelin stars in Africa probably isn't because of the taste biases, but because they simply do not go to africa at all. Similarly, they go to all of like 4 cities in the US.
@@thefunniesies my man, this was the easiest bait ever. Their username is literally just the word troll repeated over and over. Just don't respond, you're falling for their trap
We need a theory about Cinnamon Toast Crunch. They’re literally cannibals, but only when they’re kind are covered in milk. I need to see a theory other than. Milk makes them taste better.
I don't think it's just the food, maybe partially, but the atmosphere/vibe of the place and service..most Michelin stars restaurants have very similar vibes and often similar food or similar in styled preparation. They go into a restaurant that isn't run in a tradition fancy French way and it just doesn't hit as "Michelin stars worthy" for these judges because it's not the norm for them. They're judging the restaurant and not really the food which is the main problem I have with it, and it's also why French restaurants are prioritized for Michelin stars because they fit the "right vibe". No one should consider whether or not a restaurant has good food based on whether or not it has Michelin stars..plenty of great places with 0 Michelin stars!
When cars where only owned by the rich, Michelin would put out books about the best restaurants in France and it was great advertising for those restaurants
I read it was a way to get people to wear out their tyres. This restaurant that's a 700 mile round trip is a must see! Then you've added tyre wear and risked a puncture based on their recommendation
Makes sense. I know, at least in the US, alot of the Michelin star restaurants are French or French inspired. Then some Japanese restaurants. For as much amazing food as you have in Los Angeles, I don't think I've seen a Michelin star Mexican or American restaurant.
WAUU THANK YOU MAT PAT! As a Malaysian, i’ve always wondered why Singapore has more Michelin Star than Malaysia yet their food isn’t even favourable amongst their own Citizens. Most Singaporeans would come to Johor to eat out. So i did some digging and wouldn’t you know it, most of them are FRENCH CUISINE! This brings faith to me
Singaporean here, y'all got some great food there. Everyone here don't really eat french food, unless its a special occasion, and even then, there are other options
The Michelin mascott is called Bibendum and has a pretty interesting story : the Michelin factory was using a pile of tires as a sign for customers at the entry, and one day Edouard Michelin told his brother André it would ressemble a human if it had arms. Soon after an artist was recruited for an ad campaign and proposed several rejected drawings he had made for various businesses as a basis to rework for the company. One of those drawings was of an overweight man drinking a glass of wine with a slogan in latin : "nunc est bibendum", meaning "now is the time for drinking" (it was probably for a brasserie). André Michelin though it ressembled a bit a pile of tires and remembered what his brother had told him. So he asked the artist to transform the man into a pile of tires with arms, replaced the wine with sharp things (nails, glass shards, etc) and kept the slogan in latin, adding the phrase "The Michelin tire DRINKS the obstacle !" Even though the campaign was limited in scale and was not very successful, André Michelin decided to keep the character, now named Bibendum, as a way to personify the company. And this turned to be very successful, probably because it was among the very first mascott character in France and the company grew big in decades after. To the point that nowadays, "bibendum" is a common name in French. For example, the French translation for the Marshmallow Man from Ghostbuster is "Bibendum Chamallow".
@@mmw4990 That is BS it cost millions to invite their critics to your city, just so they distribute some stars between some places. How would they lose money? On what?
This may have already been mentioned but at 4:25 MatPat states that Michelin printed 35,000 (thirty-five thousand) copies but the video frame states 3,500 (three-thousand five-hundred) copies. I was wondering which one was correct because there most definitely is a BIG difference between 35,000 and 3,500 copies especially considering the time period.
@@tehfirestargames6072 they all aren't THAT expensive. I think you'd actually be surprised. When you get to the 2 and 3 stars, they can get up there. 1 stars are genuinely expensive. One's a Gastro Pub. Alot of em are really good date night spots where, if you don't drink, won't break $100 for 2 people
@@tehfirestargames6072 I mean in theory Michelin star restaurants could still be an affordable price, there’s Michelin star street food lol you can search up videos about them
Great video MatPat! Some restaurants in Toronto recently just got Michelin stars, and no surprise, the restaurants didn't just skew towards the most expensive, but out of 13 restaurants who got stars, 5 were Japanese, while the others were a combination of Italian, French and "Contemporary". Shockingly, a Mexican and Middle Eastern place cracked the Michelin list. All restaurants got one star, except for one of the Japanese restaurants that got 2. It's not to say that the restaurants on the list aren't deserving of them - I've eaten at a couple before they got their stars - but I've had far better food consistently at "lesser" restaurants across Toronto. And it's pretty clear, based on your research, that the Michelin Stars are nothing more than a rich / elitist person's restaurant guide that skew heavily towards France, surrounding regions and Japan. For others reading this, don't believe the hype and fork out more than necessary. I can tell you in Toronto alone, we have tons, tons of restaurants without Michelin Stars that put out consistently incredible food!
i heard that in the last 2 yrs they are now putting in more categories. i heard this year michelin star guide is even giving michelin star to street food. they now have a street food category but it's only this year
Can somewhat confirm. The restaurant chain Saizeriya has escargot, even though most of their menu is Italian, not French. I guess it's like how many "Japanese" restaurants in Western nations also serve fried rice and spring rolls.
There is allot of overlap. Japanese likes nude public bathing, France has the Louvre. The french army for long had fetish for bayonets, even mounting military saber length bayonets and IJA slapped a bayonet lug on almost every small arm they and there officers had flipping katanas. Lots of animes have questionable / head stratcher/ controversial plot and design choices... french guys made the movie the fifth element.
Japan and France always had a very deep love towards each other, which is why I really wasn't surprised that Japan was second when it comes to Michelin stars. Alternatively, this is also why so many French chefs moved to install their restaurants in Japan
Another point of interest is that Michelin stars are only available in specific cities in the United States and not many of them either. There are many cities that have turned into culinary hot pots but get no recognition because the Michelin star is for some reason considered the end all/ be all of culinary prestige.
3rd food theory video where I suggest making a video about what brand of root beer and vanilla ice-cream makes the best root beer floats. Also,this was a great video, as always.
I have a friend in Japan who likes to go to Michelin starred restaurants when she travels, which is often. I think she said that she mostly sticks to one and two star restaurants because the three star ones aren't worth it for the price.
I’ve found in personal experience that just because a place is fancy or has a bunch of stars dosent mean it’s the best place. When I lived in France I ate at a Michelin star restaurant but I had a better food experience with a local, supposedly less prestigious, restaurant near my flat. I’m not saying those stars aren’t earned but sometimes smaller places give you more bang for your buck
Honestly I find that true more often than not. Butbill admit I don't like most of fancy places in general. I'd like some good, down to earth, local resturant that serves some good, filling, grub any day.
I like to look at ratings to determine where to avoid more than where to go, and even beyond that you gotta read the actual rviews that the lowest and highest ratings gave to get a proper feel if you're trying to determine where to go. Though MatPat is absolutely right that the best way to know where to go is to ask the people that live in the area.
i would just go into a local store and ask there a random cashier of a supermarket would most likely be a local and know some good cheap options compared to tourists that go to the most advertised places
They just announced the first Michelin stars for Canada and this is so accurate. Toronto has such a diverse food culture and that wasn't represented at ALL in the selections.
Funny if you look there are 21 restaurants with a Michelin star in Canada. 2 which are French. Most of them are asian, contemporary or fusion. What divers food culture wasn’t represented? I agree that Michelin is an old and stuffy organization and they tend to look towards classic dining, but when I see the list I see diversity.
I learned this, not nearly as detailed, in culinary school. But i have worked at some of the best restaurants in my area and we never tried for a star. Most chefs know this grading system is deeply flawed.
Yeah, Google reviews tend to mean more, though I'd check the actual reviews for something well-written rather than trusting stars. That leverages better results in many cases.
Even google or yelp is filled with people complaining about nonsense or problems they themselves created. Like you said, there are great magazines or online articles to find good local places. Word of mouth is still and always will be the best.
I like how Matt is like OH YEAH France?! Most Americans don't even search for French cuisine!!!! I never thought I'd see the day theorist channels were biased 😂
There's probably also a class element to it too. Like you said, europeans tend to like Mediterranean quisine, yet all the best reviewed restaurants are the ones that specialize in French cuisine. IE, the restaurants that cater most effectively to the "sophisticated" pallettes of the rich folks who can afford to be restaurant reviewers for their living and who gravitate towards french cuisine due to centuries of rich people culture that emphasizes french culture as high class culture.
AAA has a restaurant ranking system! The top is the AAA 5 Diamond award which is seen as being at least almost as prestigious as Michelin 3*. And I think the restaurants that get high AAA ratings tend to be more diverse (as you might expect). Also, a LOT more US restaurants have AAA ratings. Definitely worth checking out and as with Michelin, even 1 Diamond tends to indicate a good restaurant.
Makes sense why AAA would have more, I think I remember seeing that Michelin basically won't even consider evaluating a restaurant in the US unless it's in the NYC area, Chicago, or San Francisco
@@SpeedyTubaGuy - that's what I read also. The AAA 4 & 5 Diamond restaurants that I've had the pleasure of dining at were NOT in any of those cities. One was in Tucson, AZ (the Tackroon, which sadly is no longer extant after a long and fabled operating life)! If Michelin is determined to ignore 99+% of the US, why should anyone care about their opinions in this country? Truth told, I'm more of a Diners, Drive-ins and Dives girl than even a AAA 5 Diamond fine diner! 😀 I greatly enjoyed trying the high end places to see what was up, but for general food exploration, I go for simpler (and less expensive) fare.
I recently watched a very similar video to this by Adam Ragusea (i'm just saying great minds think alike not accusing Mat of stealing) and he showed how Michelin hasn't gotten to a lot of countries outside of Europe and that would help explain why it's not used as often to judge restaurants.
The last part of the judging reminded me of something I saw years ago, which was basically a single panel comic that had a bunch of animals, cats, dogs, birds, fish, and said "in the interest of fairness, we will be judging all animals by the same standard, how easily they can climb a tree"
I have been very skeptical about Michelin stars since I learned that in a reality show, chefs with stars were having trouble just to make an street taco.
Sounds to me like other countries/regions need to start having their own versions of Michelin Stars. Michelin for French/European, and others for American, South American, African, Asian, etc. etc.
Agreed!! The original context (both the "French" & the "for rich people") seems to be still significantly influencing how the system works, but the myth of what it stands for has become so much more entrenched, it seems to obscure most of that?
I knew the backstory of the Michelin stars but didn't know about the criteria bias so I found this super interesting! Also it got me wondering - why do I see French food as fancy? As a European (from the UK) when I think of fancy food I think of Boeuf bourguignon, Salmon En Papillote, Potatoes Dauphinoise, Duck a l'orange, Mille Feuille, soufflé, clafoutis, Tarte Tatin, etc. The fanciest restaurant I can think of is coté (a chain French restaurant). Maybe its the fancy sounding names, the way these dishes are made or the history behind it but I'd love to find out! Maybe it's worth doing a food theory on?
Simple really. Because the British always found the French to be "upper class" and by extension so did it's colonies. Ever since the Middle Ages, French Aristocracy was seen as above British nobles and British Nobles would go out of their way to emulate the French. Hence why they would often learn French and English was related to "commoner speech".
British food is so basic in comparison that it's kind of inevitable to find french cuisine more fancy. This is not coming from a place of hate, I tried both multiple times and that's... my opinion, I guess? Though I would probably choose fish and chips with mushed pea and a good pint of IPA over boeuf burguignon any day. (But the country I come from has its own version of boeuf burguignon which I love very much, so maybe I'm biased.)
@@emilyivyfoster yeah. For a period of time many British even tried to pronounce things like the French because it sounded "fancier". Like dropping the H from words
I was surprised with how detailed the episodes are that when Matt mentioned they printed 35,000 copies, the number posted on the video was 3,500. Slight difference. Always great and highly informative videos though.
Thank you for writing this. I have an audio processing disorder, so I mostly rely on reading captions to get by. I was so confused why this was important when the number was only off by 500, lol
i’ve had the privilege of eating at some nice restaurants, but for sure all of the best experiences have always come from small restaurants that have like ,,,, a granny throwing down in the kitchen
Great Video Matt, something I think is worth looking into, when Michelin first started making car tyres, they weren't as profitable due to the low amount of cars. The stars began with recommending restaurants that were further away from the city so that people would have to drive further away and wear down their tyres faster. It was partially an incentive for people to wear down their tyres faster to help with Michelin's profitability.
Second time asking this, Food theory idea: could a gingerbread house actually be habitable? And if not, what food or combination of foods would make the best house?
Sounds like the real issue here is that people consider the Michelin Stars to be something they're not... they're recommendations for fancy people (and French cuisine just happens to be the most stereotypically fancy) instead of an actual indicator of how good the food is.
Adding to the conspiracy. Napa valley, which has the 3 Michelin star restaurants for about 200k people, 2 of the 3 are french themed or inspired ( bouchon, and french laundry) the third is Japanese. 👀
I enjoy this episode because it makes sense. Never really had the drive before in understanding the Michelin Star thing because of the luxury vibe of it. Another knowledge for today.
The Geico ad at the beginning is just comedic genius for some reason. There isn't anything very funny about it but I found myself laughing at MatPats puppet mouth and the French guy being super French. Great ad
Last time I went on vacation, I asked the lady at the front desk of the hotel for local restaurants that wasn't a nation wide chain. She wrote down a list for me. I then looked the places up so I could get directions to the places. I would recommend everybody try this. Some really good eating.
This was so eye-opening and such a reminder on how we can be more critical thinkers when someone says something is the "best". Also hoping this shines light on other cuisines that don't get as much published recognition but absolutely deserve it 🙏
You forget the most obvious thing MatPat (love all your theory channels btw, subbed to all), Michelin sells tires as a premium brand. Car culture in all these places have been big reasons for correlation. Example, motorsports in Japan is huge, especially touge racing and drift scenes. Locations with a huge popularity for traveling/motorsports with cars, you'll notice the larger selling of tires.
Wait a minute, you said they printed over 35,000 copies but the graphic shows 3,500. That is pretty cool though and it makes perfect sense that they'd diversify considering cars weren't very prominent back then.
I honestly think that most of the rating goes onto the “experience” rather than the food. It’s more about how the serve the menu and all the ritual around it. To truly enjoy my meal, and not that their food is bad, I’d definitely choose a different type of restaurant, there are much better ones!
I’m Australian and I’ve been to a lot of restaurants around Australia, but I don’t think I’ve seen a single French one! And Australia doesn’t have a single Michelin star! 😂
I was doing a quiz at school and it mentioned michelin stars and how they were started by the michelin tire company, and I freaked out cuz I remembered this episode, though sadly I couldn't geek out and write a whole thing on how I know all of that. It was very fun to see that in a quiz though! Thank you for all the videos you do MatPat and crew!
For American travellers, I would recommend Zagat. I know there are some controversies surrounding the highest Zagat rated restaurants, but on average the reviews are pretty reliable for middle of the road establishments in most major US cities.
Michelin stars generally are rewarded based on the formalness/fanciness of places that offer great food, so a mom and pop shops are basically excluded. I didn’t visit any too fancy place when I was in the US, I wanted to visit dinners, bbq places, brewpubs, steakhouses & the fast food places we don’t have here in the Netherlands. We did visit one fancy place that was specialized in local game meat. I am more inclined to visit a fancy place in France or Italy, as it feel like that would be a part of the experience.
Just returned from Singapore last week where I ate a $5 plate of chicken from a street vendor who held a Michelin star. You’re using a very broad brush.
Hi guys, just to say, that as a frenchman, we typicaly don't use Michelin Guide, un fact, I think that now, it's more to attract people near France, because you guessed it, if you have a problem with your tires, they will be sold massively in this part of Europe. Good video and I'm happy that someone finaly talks about France. A la revoyure mon amis Americain.
I'd love to see a food theory on germany's bread and why they have so *many* different kinds of bread -and maybe even rank some of the more common ones if you can get your hands on them-
The thing that annoys me about nice restaurants at least in the US is that the waiters/waitresses never just leave you alone. I don't need you to ask me if everything is ok or to refill my water every 5 mins 😩😩
Completely agree! Attentive service staff if you need their help is one thing, but breathing down diners' necks (probably because you've been trained that this is thr best way to get high tips) is just disruptive 😣
Some countries like the Netherlands have it in the culture for waiters to not bother clients too much. You have standard stuff like drinks, menu, food, and you will be left alone. You can stick your hand up if you need anything.
I think the general public always gets that thought where they find themselves really enjoying street food. But also thoughts of what "good" food could look like collides with what you might think of as "bad" food. I can see how it's no wonder that street food had become such a thing a while ago ^^
The thing about getting a michelin star is the fine dininges of the experience. Like if you go to south america the best food isn’t always going to be “refined”. The fact that it taste’s great doesn’t matter to the michelin guide.
Thank you for this video. I was getting some suspicious vibes from the michelin star system when I ate at two different restaurants rated the same score of 2 stars. One of them, a restaurant in Brazil, was probably the most interesting culinary experience I’ve ever had, full of intricate flavors and combinations I had never tasted before. The other, a restaurant in Switzerland, had a pretty good bison steak. And that’s it I guess?
12:07 | MatPat, im so patriotic that i can sense the word "Independence" through almost any language barrier. Also, the French revolution is related to America's in a couple of ways, and they didnt seem to make much of a difference. Legit just L - Independence. A sign that we are cooler and they can just go ahead and take the L lmfaooo
Food theory idea: how much does texture really affect taste and preference? It varies from person to person but is there a way to get around it for people with an aversion to certain textures?
This episode was very informative and educational. I always thought the number of Michelin stars you have decides how good of a restaurant you are but apparently not. It felt like there was a lot more facts than in previous videos. The video taught me Geography, History and way more about the 1900s origins of Michelin’s business tactics. As usual a great Food Theory video. Can’t wait for the next one. Thanks Mat Pat. From Anonymous Writer. 😁😀
THANK YOU for this video MatPat!
As a Colombian-American who loves cooking, the fact that Latin America as a whole has so few Michelin stars always irritated me, since we have such wide diversity and flavor in our cuisines! I always felt that there was a European bias with these reviews. Don’t get me wrong, I love European cuisine, but there needs to be more love for Latin America and our amazing dishes. I’m sure there’s a a Michelin-worthy Arepa out there!
PS I feel like Papas Chorreadas would be something Michelin reviewers would like, but maybe that’s just me lol. Maybe they’d appreciate a bandeja paisa?
I’m no food expert but I agree with you that a bias towards European cuisine (though not super prominent) is definitely there.
OMG YES. Im Colombian too and like there are so many good restaurants here that deserve some recognition. Its kinda sad to see how something as mundane as food critcing is still under eurocentric ideals
Michelin bias af
As a half Colombian half Venezuelan, I can confirm that both Colombian and Venezuelan arepas deserve Michelin stars. But mostly Venezuelan ones.
I think we would benefit from having different rating for different cuisines, it is hard to rate chinese food agains european food for example because they are very different in their flavours. So i think that the idea of a generalized rating is wrong, there should be per cuisine ratings by different critics.
As someone who has worked in the restaurant industry a long time and who deeply loves food and this industry I've always believed that if you have a Michelin star that you earned it but if you don't have one doesn't mean you don't deserve it
I don't have a huge sample size to draw from, but every experience in even a 1 Michelin star restaurant has been amazing.
So yes, it's a guide to good food, not an exclusive list of good food. After all taste, especially the litteral taste of food is super subjective.
Eg heat and spice levels that make SE Asian food delicious for some, make it inedible for others. When judging, the best you can ever do is try to quantify how well executed a specific idea is.
Very true!
They just didn't have time to hire non-french reviewers yet.
Ok Dont read my name 😑 ..
@@NeoHellPoet
Good point.
There is something like regional taste and a French guide is probably the best guide for French people or if you like -French food- the same food as the French you are very well equipped with the Micheline guide.
As a french trained chef whos been lucky enough to eat at several michelin star restaurants, I can say that the food in these restaurants are often very similar in vibe, and the ambiance of the restaurant is always very intense, you have a ton of waiters over your shoulder, everything seems so fancy and part of a protocol. I've realized with time I much rather enjoy a chill atmosphere, were you can hear people buzzing and laughing! Some of the BEST meals of my life have actually been very cheap, in fun, authentic restaurants!
The chill atmosphere feeling is what I love about non fancy restaurants
@@anintrovertonyoutube5271 This!
I don't want to "work" or feel like I'm "working" for my meals. The fancy life is something I guess, and depending on the place, the taste can be phenominal, but dressing up and having yo not only behave but access my "hardcor proper persona" is not something I ever look foward too.
Good food, and good people I can be myself around though... 🤌
Let’s be honest no one asked
Huh. Where have I heard that before? [Grins knowingly at MLP FiM, specifically the episode "Spice Up Your Life"]
@@economicapple2609 well they dont need peoples permission to share something
I have a friend who worked in the kitchen at a Michelin starred restaurant, and she told me the biggest part of earning a star was non-food related. It was how you go above and beyond with the administrative, organization and presentation of the restaurant itself. Obviously you can't serve bad food, but the process of earning the star was more about how much extra you're willing to go to make your restaurant LOOK like a Michelin restaurant.
This is actually pretty dead-on accurate. I worked at a few restaurants in one of the top hotels in Vegas, and it was pretty well known among that crowd that if you wanted to qualify for a star, your front of house service matters even more than the food.
Makes sense. If you have good food and your restaurant looks amazing, wallah!
that "above and beyond" thing you're speaking of is called SERVICE and it's not a mirage or trick to tickle the egos of associations that hand out rewards.
@@scottduke2809 dude... C'mon... Service is not what anyone is talking about and you know it. You just want to complain about today's society and sound above-it-all.
@@jefftalley7036 not at all. i work in a Michilan recognized restaurant and the knowledgable service is absolutely critical. also, even with a latin american focused menu french techniques and understanding is a major factor as it has been as literally every restaurant i have worked in over the past 30 years, and it’s becoming MORE so every year. this has nothing to do with complaining, rather setting the record a bit more inline with reality.
There is a restaurant in my area that actually turned down the Michelin Star. They said it brings a lot of stress for the restaurant and the chefs to actually keep it and it jacks up the prices which scares a lot of customers away. Makes sense when you think about it.
To each their own.
this is the only sensible thing to do
I heard about gentrification of the entire area too that goes along with a 'fancy' place in the area. It's like an infestation.
@@rustyhowe3907 that's basically what a lot of big cities have done in the usa, and places like vermont.
Everyone is a foodie, everyone thinks their recipes are special!
You can't get out of a restaurant for less than 20 bucks for a burger and fries
And then pay carbon taxes, $15 minimum wage on top of tips.
I know a restaurant in Vermont that charges for napkins.
So needless to say their recycled bathroom paper towel dispenser is always empty
@@TheFoolintherainn The exact same happens in Australia as well, it's really sad.
Matpat sponsorships on youtube are always creative and funny....but having him stuck on the road in the middle of a road trip with a busted tire, only to be approached by a french man who has memorized a commerical for a insurance comapny with a biritsh gecko as it's mascot is top quality work.
Let's be honest we remember this
th-cam.com/video/0-rj80lMBzc/w-d-xo.html
@Josh the Joshey Boii have not clicked the link but I believe it is the potato cutting or something
@@ChristianRandorff Ignore and report all bots. We need to stand up for integrity!
Nah it annoyed me personally. Y'all only have one french joke and it's not even funny. Are you even aware that french people don't actually talk like that in reality ?
There's a huge friendship between France and Japan that's gone on for ages, to the point that in the late 90's each country spent a year celebrating each other's culture. Even if the Japanese restaurants getting stars hadn't sold French food, it'd still be a case of giving a best friend a pat on the back
And when the former Japanese emperor, Akihito, became emperor in 1989, each foreign head of state / head of government that was invited to the ceremony was alloted 15 minutes of discussion with the new emperor... but for the French president François Mitterrand, it was two and a half hours.
Disagree. This episode is so bias AWAY from France. USA isn't exactly known for it's restaurant. More known for it's fast food. Normally I'm with you, I agree with Matpat. But I feel like he's holding some sort of grudge.
(Japan is basically known for they're food. Italy has pasta, pizza ect. And German has a lot more different types of sausages then anywhere else in the world. If anything I'm surprised England wasn't on the list, but meh. America definitely wouldn't be. Stop making bias results please Matpat. Uncool.
@@_theknighthawk_7018 Counterpoint, there's been a huge rivalry between France and Britain that's lasted centuries, so an absence of British restaurants from the list would be expected if the list had a French bias. In addition, China, Thailand and India all have iconic culinary styles largely ignored by this list, so the elevation of Japan makes it the odd country out in its region of the world
France even helped the shogunate try to overthrow the emperor and one of the most famous foreign samurai was a french guy who just fell in love with the shogunate and wanted to become a samurai
@@_theknighthawk_7018 people are assuming he said they were biased when he pointed out that it's just not a purely objective test - and this may be because of the reviewer pool regional imbalances
I've worked at a michelin star restaurant. It has nothing to do with taste. You're required to obviously serve quality food, but it's mostly about the degree to which your silverware is polished (and good luck getting a star with stainless steel). Your staff basically has to go the extra 500 miles, and culturally speaking the Japanese just have a talent for doing just that for any guest.
Fancy food too. Edible gold plated wagyu burgers
I can imagine MatPat stopping a stranger to talk about history for ten minutes.
Yes lmao
Oh cool 5 bots already on this comment
Bro wtf so many bots
Matpat, you have now officially been challenged. Next video. Lets do it
@@rora225 4*
The anime Food Wars literally has an arc about this. A new headmaster wants them to focus only on fine dining and due to the French bias in Fine Dining he specifically calls out Japanese street food as lower class. This show actually lead me to study more non-western cooking.
I wish I had the money to get the managa for that. I despise the show. The esposodes themseleves are only like 8-10min each, once you cut out their reactions everytime they take a bite.
I don't remember azami being french biased? Nor did he say anything about japanese [street] food. He just hates creativity
@@Insertia_Nameia read online
@@jamhamtime1878 I was gunna say the same thing, I don't think he's french biased at all, just poor food biased. Japan has a long history of super fancy, high class, expensive food that is also local and traditionally Japanese, especially in seafood, and the show and Azami look to those just as highly.
👍 yes
I personally always rely on the advice "go where the locals go" or "if it's dinner time and it's busy, it's probably worth the wait". I also always look at price points too, but you gotta do what you gotta do these days :)
That's usually good advice. I seek out the hole in the wall places that serve great food but don't get the love and praise that the fancy looking places do.
@Jimmy at my home town there's a bridge that's usually used to dive into the water by us locals because we know it and we know when to use it, so if another place has locals doing the same there's probably a reason
Not in Malaysia, if I see people queuing up, I avoid it like the plague as it's usually overrated, expensive and often extremely gross
One time I was coming down with a cold, absolutely starving, and had been travelling for hours. When I arrived at my destination I checked google maps and tripadvisor to see where the "good" food places were and they were all crazy expensive and the food just didn't look good to me. Then I noticed, out of the corner of my eye, this tiny little Cantonese place with an unassuming sign outside and a flickering light, but it was completely packed with customers and they were all Asian (which lbr is a good sign when it comes to Asian restaurants). I went inside and ordered a huge bowl of congee, a plate of char siu bao, and some kind of veggies side dish. The people working there were super nice, gave me a free ice cold bottle of coke and a free dessert, asked me where I was headed and gave me directions, and even let me use their staff-only bathroom. It was one of the best meals I've had while travelling but only had one review (in Chinese) online. It clearly wouldn't get any attention from "respectable restaurant critics" and this made me pause and reconsider the value I'd been placing on restaurant reviews and the people I was giving my money to. Ever since, I've sought out the places where the locals eat, the places that are friendly but not grovelling for a good instagram post, the places that appreciate their customers and take pride in their wholesome food. It's been a much better experience over all and I've saved a lot of money!
@@patrickwilliamson29lol i bet you know alot about fine cuisine patrick
This is something that directly translates to the few-and-far-between Michelin Stars outside Europe. While watching Netflix's "Chef's Table" I noticed the trend that - no matter what Michelin Star rated restauranteur they focused on in any part of the world, and no matter what regional food the restaurant focused on - the head chef ALWAYS got their start in France. ALWAYS. Super sus
as other commenters have mentioned, what distinguishes michelin star restuarants is not the food, its about the service. Michelin reviewers base their opinions on French service standards. it makes sense that a chef who started off in France knows how to cater to those metrics.
Because it’s in france that you get the best training. We basically invented fine dining, and even other cultures use our techniques now.
@@lakoeck That or you're so full of yourselves that you think that presentation makes up for the fact that your food is quite frankly (no pun intended) MEDIOCRE.
yeah. And since I know best food in the world comes from countries that are more biodiverse since they have more diversity of plants which make them have more combination of delicious food, these countries are tipically near the ecuator and are the ones that actually ranks better in people choosing their best cuisines.
@@lakoeck The food itself doesn't sound that appealing, and I don't need overdone service to enjoy a meal.
Food theory video idea: Can eating food you hate actually make you feel sick or really get sick?
@@benito23453 did I ask? Bot
good idea!
I don't think so
Yes. Reversed placebo effect. Theory solved.
You dont need video of that, of course it can make you feel sick
As a french I always thought the Michelin star was a national standard for high quality food that also awarded a few restaurants abroad but I never thought they marketed themselves as the international reference for food...
They do and it’s honestly why American chefs “hate” the French. They don’t but the negative effects of those ridiculous stars have ended chefs careers for pointless reasons
@Peter McCallister The thing is, though, Google's rankings are based on individual feedback, not an arbitrary panel of Google's own judges. If a restaurant has a low rating, it's because the majority of people who've reviewed that restaurant didn't enjoy their experience, not just because of cultural differences being lost on a judge from another part of the world, or because it doesn't meet the standards of what Google itself considers a "good restaurant".
@@petermccallister8762 I am so confused by your comments.
Michelin stars seem like a universal standard for food or at least are advertised as such but when you look at it more closely, you can see an extreme bias. It's fine to like French food and eating at those restaurants, but if they have a reputation for choosing the "best" restaurants when they are really selecting a very selective cuisine that doesn't represent the "best" food, it can get confusing
@@AFUNW americans hate french in general. Maybe chefs more but come on america is not known for its good food. Your food culture is basically non-existant, you have invented fast food, sodas and that’s all. Every other country have better food, especially countries like france, italy or japan who worked on their food for centuries
@@lakoeck😂😂😂😂 Omg, you lack any sense of self awareness at all. You make this sweeping statement that Americans hate the French...then proceed to generalise and stereotype. It's absolute nonsense.
As an ex-professional chef (but current chef to all my friends and fam) of a Michelin three star restaurant that was on the Bay Area's Top 100 for the three years I worked there, I'm so happy you made this.
(Pssssst, even though it was a Japanese/American restaurant where I used to work, we used a lot of French style cooking techniques per "Chefs" ord--ah--request. Wonder why we got so many food critics so early after the grand opening...)
That´s how vietnamese food changed. They use a lot of french technic ( most famous example would be Phô)
The next channel could be only about history and I’d listen for hours
I agree, it would probably be wayyy harder to not be political and show all sides of an event to not discriminate
"In today's video we will be investigating who really killed JFK?"
History theory would be cool
It may as well be about conspiracy theories... Not long ago, the familiar theory channel logo was shown with a purple down right corner while Editor Dan talked about conspiracies...
I would love to hear about the 1800s Canada History then!
This made me realize that there are no michelin star restaurants in all of Africa, even in Morocco where there are some extremely high quality restaurants that even Gordon ate at and blew his mind. And they mainly serve Moroccan food with a small western twist mainly in plating.
The reason there are no michelin stars in Africa probably isn't because of the taste biases, but because they simply do not go to africa at all. Similarly, they go to all of like 4 cities in the US.
probably because their food sucks, simple
Don't listen to the comment above it's just a kid who thinks he is cool.
@@cheeppacees88888 sounds like you either American who likes eating grease off the stove or a British person who likes beans on toast
@@thefunniesies my man, this was the easiest bait ever. Their username is literally just the word troll repeated over and over. Just don't respond, you're falling for their trap
We need a theory about Cinnamon Toast Crunch. They’re literally cannibals, but only when they’re kind are covered in milk. I need to see a theory other than. Milk makes them taste better.
Ok Dont read my name 😑
Ok Dont read my name 😑
So they would be cannibals and racists?
Sucks to have so much bots. Anyways that would actually be really interesting, it would go well with cannibal week too :D
Let's be honest we hate these bots
Matpat needs his own show, "Matpat Ruins Most Things", the sequel to "Adam Ruins Everything".
He does! It's called Game/Food/Film Theory!
They together would be too powerful
At least Matpat actually does thorough research
At least Matts videos are grounded mostly on facts and research, adams is mainly on bullshit lol
"Adam ruins everything" was garbage. It was basically all biased and cherry picked info to push some strange agenda.
I don't think it's just the food, maybe partially, but the atmosphere/vibe of the place and service..most Michelin stars restaurants have very similar vibes and often similar food or similar in styled preparation. They go into a restaurant that isn't run in a tradition fancy French way and it just doesn't hit as "Michelin stars worthy" for these judges because it's not the norm for them. They're judging the restaurant and not really the food which is the main problem I have with it, and it's also why French restaurants are prioritized for Michelin stars because they fit the "right vibe". No one should consider whether or not a restaurant has good food based on whether or not it has Michelin stars..plenty of great places with 0 Michelin stars!
Always found it odd that a tire company would give out culinary rewards…
Dont read my name 😑 ..........
When cars where only owned by the rich, Michelin would put out books about the best restaurants in France and it was great advertising for those restaurants
I read it was a way to get people to wear out their tyres. This restaurant that's a 700 mile round trip is a must see! Then you've added tyre wear and risked a puncture based on their recommendation
I literally didn't know they were founded by the same company....
it was originally to recommend good restaurants to eat at while youre out on a roadtrip, hence why they as a tire company were making it
Makes sense. I know, at least in the US, alot of the Michelin star restaurants are French or French inspired. Then some Japanese restaurants. For as much amazing food as you have in Los Angeles, I don't think I've seen a Michelin star Mexican or American restaurant.
What are these replies 😭
@@electric_cat_101 ong
@@electric_cat_101 man idk. They're all over the comments.
@@electric_cat_101 Bots. Lots of annoying bots.
There is1 Mexican starred restaurant. 1. Mexican sauce work destroy most mother sauces
my favorite part is how matpat says 35,000 at 4:25 but the visual onscreen is 3500
MatPat is a brain burner!(Правдивое видео🇷🇺):...th-cam.com/video/q1A7CqCKQAc/w-d-xo.html
bruh
ikr XD
I saw that in the video, and thought, maby im original. Nope
Me too.
WAUU THANK YOU MAT PAT! As a Malaysian, i’ve always wondered why Singapore has more Michelin Star than Malaysia yet their food isn’t even favourable amongst their own Citizens. Most Singaporeans would come to Johor to eat out. So i did some digging and wouldn’t you know it, most of them are FRENCH CUISINE! This brings faith to me
Singaporean here, y'all got some great food there. Everyone here don't really eat french food, unless its a special occasion, and even then, there are other options
Yeah, I agree. I'm not Singaporean but I was raised there, and I can definitely say that Malaysian food just hits differently.
Indonesian food much better than Malaysia too but no Michelin star
The Michelin mascott is called Bibendum and has a pretty interesting story : the Michelin factory was using a pile of tires as a sign for customers at the entry, and one day Edouard Michelin told his brother André it would ressemble a human if it had arms.
Soon after an artist was recruited for an ad campaign and proposed several rejected drawings he had made for various businesses as a basis to rework for the company. One of those drawings was of an overweight man drinking a glass of wine with a slogan in latin : "nunc est bibendum", meaning "now is the time for drinking" (it was probably for a brasserie). André Michelin though it ressembled a bit a pile of tires and remembered what his brother had told him. So he asked the artist to transform the man into a pile of tires with arms, replaced the wine with sharp things (nails, glass shards, etc) and kept the slogan in latin, adding the phrase "The Michelin tire DRINKS the obstacle !"
Even though the campaign was limited in scale and was not very successful, André Michelin decided to keep the character, now named Bibendum, as a way to personify the company. And this turned to be very successful, probably because it was among the very first mascott character in France and the company grew big in decades after. To the point that nowadays, "bibendum" is a common name in French. For example, the French translation for the Marshmallow Man from Ghostbuster is "Bibendum Chamallow".
Wow! That was really cool! I always wondered how the Michelin tire man came about.
And Bidendum is the name of the London restaurant that used to be owned my Michelin
Shrouded hand has an amazing video about the bibendum entity. Bibendum is on my mind quite a lot. It haunts my dreams.
its actually really impressive how michelin could actually earn money through the travel guide and advertise at the same time
They made huge losses on the guide
Yeah he literally said they did lose money, and didn’t care 💀
bruv your name shouldve been ksi owned by speed
Guys I have a weird question but are there cooking tutions? Like we know about their classes, but are there tution like set ups?
@@mmw4990 That is BS it cost millions to invite their critics to your city, just so they distribute some stars between some places. How would they lose money? On what?
This may have already been mentioned but at 4:25 MatPat states that Michelin printed 35,000 (thirty-five thousand) copies but the video frame states 3,500 (three-thousand five-hundred) copies. I was wondering which one was correct because there most definitely is a BIG difference between 35,000 and 3,500 copies especially considering the time period.
I want to know too. 35 hundred or 35 thousand
I guess the fourth 'theory' channel isn't going to be 'Number Theory' then....
Was looking for someone to mention this too had to double back on that one.
To be honest,I'm impressed Matpat and talk for about 10 minutes straight with a neutral voice and basically not stopping.
It's called cutting
@@enoyna1001 It's called a joke
Ironically as someone who has lived in Europe for 4 years, the only Michelin star restaurant I’ve been to was in the states
How to flex that you’re rich without flexing that you’re rich:
@@tehfirestargames6072 they all aren't THAT expensive. I think you'd actually be surprised. When you get to the 2 and 3 stars, they can get up there. 1 stars are genuinely expensive. One's a Gastro Pub. Alot of em are really good date night spots where, if you don't drink, won't break $100 for 2 people
@@tehfirestargames6072 I mean in theory Michelin star restaurants could still be an affordable price, there’s Michelin star street food lol you can search up videos about them
So many bots man
Ok Dont read my name 😑 ..
Great video MatPat! Some restaurants in Toronto recently just got Michelin stars, and no surprise, the restaurants didn't just skew towards the most expensive, but out of 13 restaurants who got stars, 5 were Japanese, while the others were a combination of Italian, French and "Contemporary". Shockingly, a Mexican and Middle Eastern place cracked the Michelin list. All restaurants got one star, except for one of the Japanese restaurants that got 2.
It's not to say that the restaurants on the list aren't deserving of them - I've eaten at a couple before they got their stars - but I've had far better food consistently at "lesser" restaurants across Toronto. And it's pretty clear, based on your research, that the Michelin Stars are nothing more than a rich / elitist person's restaurant guide that skew heavily towards France, surrounding regions and Japan.
For others reading this, don't believe the hype and fork out more than necessary. I can tell you in Toronto alone, we have tons, tons of restaurants without Michelin Stars that put out consistently incredible food!
Let's be honest we remember this
th-cam.com/video/0-rj80lMBzc/w-d-xo.html
Why over pay for food?
@@ctg4818 Some people pay for single experiences. Others just either have way too much money to care or love spending too much to care.
Any recommendations? Going back to visit Toronto soon :)
i heard that in the last 2 yrs they are now putting in more categories. i heard this year michelin star guide is even giving michelin star to street food. they now have a street food category but it's only this year
Based on the original Japanese Iron Chef show, the Japanese love French food. People would go nuts for Sakai's dishes.
Let's be honest we remember this
th-cam.com/video/0-rj80lMBzc/w-d-xo.html
Can somewhat confirm. The restaurant chain Saizeriya has escargot, even though most of their menu is Italian, not French. I guess it's like how many "Japanese" restaurants in Western nations also serve fried rice and spring rolls.
There is allot of overlap. Japanese likes nude public bathing, France has the Louvre. The french army for long had fetish for bayonets, even mounting military saber length bayonets and IJA slapped a bayonet lug on almost every small arm they and there officers had flipping katanas. Lots of animes have questionable / head stratcher/ controversial plot and design choices... french guys made the movie the fifth element.
Japan and France always had a very deep love towards each other, which is why I really wasn't surprised that Japan was second when it comes to Michelin stars.
Alternatively, this is also why so many French chefs moved to install their restaurants in Japan
All chefs have a love of French food. It’s the base for so much of cooking because they were the first to really write down a lot about method.
Another point of interest is that Michelin stars are only available in specific cities in the United States and not many of them either. There are many cities that have turned into culinary hot pots but get no recognition because the Michelin star is for some reason considered the end all/ be all of culinary prestige.
3rd food theory video where I suggest making a video about what brand of root beer and vanilla ice-cream makes the best root beer floats.
Also,this was a great video, as always.
That actually sounds really cool
Barqs root beer is the best... its the only root beer in the US that has caffiene in it
Ok Dont read my name 😑 ..
One thing I found out is if you use Mt Dew instead of Root Beer it tastes like Sherbert.
I honestly forgot about Michelin being a tire company.
@leaked footage Stop promoting.
Same
Ok Dont read my name 😑 ..
@@RhysRTX Never reply to a bot. Just report as spam or go to their About page and flag them as a spammer.
I didn't know the companies were related.
As a Michelin Star, I can confirm the restaurants were lying.
Can you tell us more?
Let's be honest we remember this
th-cam.com/video/0-rj80lMBzc/w-d-xo.html
Let's be honest we remember this
th-cam.com/video/0-rj80lMBzc/w-d-xo.html
lying where? In France?
I have a friend in Japan who likes to go to Michelin starred restaurants when she travels, which is often. I think she said that she mostly sticks to one and two star restaurants because the three star ones aren't worth it for the price.
I’ve found in personal experience that just because a place is fancy or has a bunch of stars dosent mean it’s the best place. When I lived in France I ate at a Michelin star restaurant but I had a better food experience with a local, supposedly less prestigious, restaurant near my flat. I’m not saying those stars aren’t earned but sometimes smaller places give you more bang for your buck
Honestly I find that true more often than not. Butbill admit I don't like most of fancy places in general. I'd like some good, down to earth, local resturant that serves some good, filling, grub any day.
They dont even have spicy food and as a person of taste i know that food isnt good unless the spicy challenges you to not throw up.
@@thewhitewolf58 Good for you but I'd personally like to enjoy my meal, not hang on for dear life while eating food
I like to look at ratings to determine where to avoid more than where to go, and even beyond that you gotta read the actual rviews that the lowest and highest ratings gave to get a proper feel if you're trying to determine where to go. Though MatPat is absolutely right that the best way to know where to go is to ask the people that live in the area.
i would just go into a local store and ask there
a random cashier of a supermarket would most likely be a local and know some good cheap options compared to tourists that go to the most advertised places
They just announced the first Michelin stars for Canada and this is so accurate. Toronto has such a diverse food culture and that wasn't represented at ALL in the selections.
Funny if you look there are 21 restaurants with a Michelin star in Canada. 2 which are French. Most of them are asian, contemporary or fusion.
What divers food culture wasn’t represented? I agree that Michelin is an old and stuffy organization and they tend to look towards classic dining, but when I see the list I see diversity.
Yawn. Another TikTok taught halfwit griping about cultural imbalance.
I learned this, not nearly as detailed, in culinary school. But i have worked at some of the best restaurants in my area and we never tried for a star. Most chefs know this grading system is deeply flawed.
Yeah, Google reviews tend to mean more, though I'd check the actual reviews for something well-written rather than trusting stars. That leverages better results in many cases.
Even google or yelp is filled with people complaining about nonsense or problems they themselves created. Like you said, there are great magazines or online articles to find good local places. Word of mouth is still and always will be the best.
I like how Matt is like OH YEAH France?! Most Americans don't even search for French cuisine!!!!
I never thought I'd see the day theorist channels were biased 😂
I’ve never seen an insurance company sponsor a TH-camr, this is wonderful
MatPat is a brain burner!(Правдивое видео🇷🇺):.....th-cam.com/video/q1A7CqCKQAc/w-d-xo.html
GEICO has sponsored some game theory videos
@@SamTaylorsVersion Weirdly, always Sonic... 🤔
Dont read my name 😑 ..........
then you haven't watched Game Theory
i absolutely love the TH-camrs who put the sponsors into time stamps so you can skip through them 😊
Matpat masterclass
6:37 THE SPIFFING BRIT
There's probably also a class element to it too. Like you said, europeans tend to like Mediterranean quisine, yet all the best reviewed restaurants are the ones that specialize in French cuisine. IE, the restaurants that cater most effectively to the "sophisticated" pallettes of the rich folks who can afford to be restaurant reviewers for their living and who gravitate towards french cuisine due to centuries of rich people culture that emphasizes french culture as high class culture.
The answer to the question at 2:19 is very early in the history of automobiles, when tires were made of undyed natural rubber.
I was expecting him to say that as a fun fact, not be confused about it :(
AAA has a restaurant ranking system! The top is the AAA 5 Diamond award which is seen as being at least almost as prestigious as Michelin 3*. And I think the restaurants that get high AAA ratings tend to be more diverse (as you might expect). Also, a LOT more US restaurants have AAA ratings. Definitely worth checking out and as with Michelin, even 1 Diamond tends to indicate a good restaurant.
Makes sense why AAA would have more, I think I remember seeing that Michelin basically won't even consider evaluating a restaurant in the US unless it's in the NYC area, Chicago, or San Francisco
@@SpeedyTubaGuy - that's what I read also. The AAA 4 & 5 Diamond restaurants that I've had the pleasure of dining at were NOT in any of those cities. One was in Tucson, AZ (the Tackroon, which sadly is no longer extant after a long and fabled operating life)! If Michelin is determined to ignore 99+% of the US, why should anyone care about their opinions in this country?
Truth told, I'm more of a Diners, Drive-ins and Dives girl than even a AAA 5 Diamond fine diner! 😀 I greatly enjoyed trying the high end places to see what was up, but for general food exploration, I go for simpler (and less expensive) fare.
I recently watched a very similar video to this by Adam Ragusea (i'm just saying great minds think alike not accusing Mat of stealing) and he showed how Michelin hasn't gotten to a lot of countries outside of Europe and that would help explain why it's not used as often to judge restaurants.
That's a really good channel when it comes to food and learning about it's history. I also love Tasting History.
The last part of the judging reminded me of something I saw years ago, which was basically a single panel comic that had a bunch of animals, cats, dogs, birds, fish, and said "in the interest of fairness, we will be judging all animals by the same standard, how easily they can climb a tree"
I have been very skeptical about Michelin stars since I learned that in a reality show, chefs with stars were having trouble just to make an street taco.
Ahem Gordon 💀
😂😂😂
I remember a competition to make a cheese sandwich. Who puts truffes in a cheese sandwich?
@@bobtoad8601 whoever has the money to do it LOL
Sounds to me like other countries/regions need to start having their own versions of Michelin Stars. Michelin for French/European, and others for American, South American, African, Asian, etc. etc.
Europe needs its own system as well, because France only looks at their neighbors, meaning southern or Scandinavian countries get shafted.
The beginning sponsored part was more entertaining than actual Geico commercials
The spiffin brit, probably: michelin star guide is perfectly balanced with no exploits
Lol I saw it and i immediately came here to see if anyone knew. I’m so glad you know 🥲
FINALLY,someone else who realizes that "Fancy" restaurants are just overpriced sandwiches because some guy says so!
My guy, that is not what he said!
@@Dodl1 Yeah,but still. Don't like it when people use their bias to judge something that need all views
Let's be honest we remember this
th-cam.com/video/0-rj80lMBzc/w-d-xo.html
Is a hamburger 🍔 a sandwich?
Too real 5:00 i didnt expect to be called out about housing
5:05 do not call me out
Got to say, turning a marketing idea into a globally recognized stamp of excellence is quite an accomplishment.
Agreed!! The original context (both the "French" & the "for rich people") seems to be still significantly influencing how the system works, but the myth of what it stands for has become so much more entrenched, it seems to obscure most of that?
I knew the backstory of the Michelin stars but didn't know about the criteria bias so I found this super interesting! Also it got me wondering - why do I see French food as fancy? As a European (from the UK) when I think of fancy food I think of Boeuf bourguignon, Salmon En Papillote, Potatoes Dauphinoise, Duck a l'orange, Mille Feuille, soufflé, clafoutis, Tarte Tatin, etc. The fanciest restaurant I can think of is coté (a chain French restaurant). Maybe its the fancy sounding names, the way these dishes are made or the history behind it but I'd love to find out! Maybe it's worth doing a food theory on?
Simple really. Because the British always found the French to be "upper class" and by extension so did it's colonies.
Ever since the Middle Ages, French Aristocracy was seen as above British nobles and British Nobles would go out of their way to emulate the French. Hence why they would often learn French and English was related to "commoner speech".
@@NecroAsphyxia oh thank you that’s really interesting I never knew that!
British food is so basic in comparison that it's kind of inevitable to find french cuisine more fancy. This is not coming from a place of hate, I tried both multiple times and that's... my opinion, I guess? Though I would probably choose fish and chips with mushed pea and a good pint of IPA over boeuf burguignon any day. (But the country I come from has its own version of boeuf burguignon which I love very much, so maybe I'm biased.)
@@emilyivyfoster yeah. For a period of time many British even tried to pronounce things like the French because it sounded "fancier". Like dropping the H from words
French food is better.... MatPat should have visited France instead of looking at Google trends.
I was surprised with how detailed the episodes are that when Matt mentioned they printed 35,000 copies, the number posted on the video was 3,500. Slight difference. Always great and highly informative videos though.
Some mistakes do happen in the theory videos and well small things like that happen
im surprised i noticed that too lol
Came here to say just that
Saem
Thank you for writing this. I have an audio processing disorder, so I mostly rely on reading captions to get by. I was so confused why this was important when the number was only off by 500, lol
i’ve had the privilege of eating at some nice restaurants, but for sure all of the best experiences have always come from small restaurants that have like ,,,, a granny throwing down in the kitchen
Great Video Matt, something I think is worth looking into, when Michelin first started making car tyres, they weren't as profitable due to the low amount of cars. The stars began with recommending restaurants that were further away from the city so that people would have to drive further away and wear down their tyres faster. It was partially an incentive for people to wear down their tyres faster to help with Michelin's profitability.
This also helps to explain that over time, more countries bordering France also got the stars as they are much further to drive to.
Second time asking this, Food theory idea: could a gingerbread house actually be habitable? And if not, what food or combination of foods would make the best house?
Let's be honest we remember this
th-cam.com/video/0-rj80lMBzc/w-d-xo.html
Oh man that's such a good idea I hope they make it
No and none because ants and rain
Sounds like the real issue here is that people consider the Michelin Stars to be something they're not... they're recommendations for fancy people (and French cuisine just happens to be the most stereotypically fancy) instead of an actual indicator of how good the food is.
Adding to the conspiracy. Napa valley, which has the 3 Michelin star restaurants for about 200k people, 2 of the 3 are french themed or inspired ( bouchon, and french laundry) the third is Japanese. 👀
I enjoy this episode because it makes sense. Never really had the drive before in understanding the Michelin Star thing because of the luxury vibe of it. Another knowledge for today.
Actually Mat, AAA does do reviews of restaurants among other things. They can even plan a trip if you go into one of the AAA offices.
The Geico ad at the beginning is just comedic genius for some reason. There isn't anything very funny about it but I found myself laughing at MatPats puppet mouth and the French guy being super French. Great ad
MatPat is a brain burner!(Правдивое видео🇷🇺):.....th-cam.com/video/q1A7CqCKQAc/w-d-xo.html
Ok Dont read my name 😑
Last time I went on vacation, I asked the lady at the front desk of the hotel for local restaurants that wasn't a nation wide chain. She wrote down a list for me. I then looked the places up so I could get directions to the places. I would recommend everybody try this. Some really good eating.
This was so eye-opening and such a reminder on how we can be more critical thinkers when someone says something is the "best". Also hoping this shines light on other cuisines that don't get as much published recognition but absolutely deserve it 🙏
You forget the most obvious thing MatPat (love all your theory channels btw, subbed to all), Michelin sells tires as a premium brand. Car culture in all these places have been big reasons for correlation. Example, motorsports in Japan is huge, especially touge racing and drift scenes. Locations with a huge popularity for traveling/motorsports with cars, you'll notice the larger selling of tires.
I have also heard of the similarity affect. People prefer things they are used to and some foods are probably foods that they aren't used to eating.
As a chef for 20 years I've noticed this awhile ago and have always followed locals recommendations for food
France: "Are these...food?"
Also France: *Eats snails and frog legs*
Wait a minute, you said they printed over 35,000 copies but the graphic shows 3,500.
That is pretty cool though and it makes perfect sense that they'd diversify considering cars weren't very prominent back then.
Michelin stars aren't really a grade of how good a restaurant is but they are good to see how fancy a restaurant is
Food theory idea: are beans really good for your heart?
Let's be honest we remember this
th-cam.com/video/0-rj80lMBzc/w-d-xo.html
Yes, but you have to cook them. Raw beans can actually do the exact opposite.
"See, no horse! No horse! But of course..."
- Matpat, just sliiiiiding that one past so casually.
I honestly think that most of the rating goes onto the “experience” rather than the food. It’s more about how the serve the menu and all the ritual around it. To truly enjoy my meal, and not that their food is bad, I’d definitely choose a different type of restaurant, there are much better ones!
I never thought i'd see the day when an insurance company would sponsor a food channel
I’m Australian and I’ve been to a lot of restaurants around Australia, but I don’t think I’ve seen a single French one!
And Australia doesn’t have a single Michelin star! 😂
Australia has tons of variety of cuisine and chefs. With ingredients easy to obtain it can be good too.
There is 7 in Australia
I indeed never tried fried tarentula
Can't beat a chicken snitty/parma.
@@ADerpyReality Stars, or French restaurants?
I was doing a quiz at school and it mentioned michelin stars and how they were started by the michelin tire company, and I freaked out cuz I remembered this episode, though sadly I couldn't geek out and write a whole thing on how I know all of that. It was very fun to see that in a quiz though! Thank you for all the videos you do MatPat and crew!
For American travellers, I would recommend Zagat. I know there are some controversies surrounding the highest Zagat rated restaurants, but on average the reviews are pretty reliable for middle of the road establishments in most major US cities.
Michelin stars generally are rewarded based on the formalness/fanciness of places that offer great food, so a mom and pop shops are basically excluded.
I didn’t visit any too fancy place when I was in the US, I wanted to visit dinners, bbq places, brewpubs, steakhouses & the fast food places we don’t have here in the Netherlands. We did visit one fancy place that was specialized in local game meat.
I am more inclined to visit a fancy place in France or Italy, as it feel like that would be a part of the experience.
Let's be honest we remember this
th-cam.com/video/0-rj80lMBzc/w-d-xo.html
Just returned from Singapore last week where I ate a $5 plate of chicken from a street vendor who held a Michelin star.
You’re using a very broad brush.
When Ollie gets older he's gonna have sm fun telling people what his dad does and all the theories he got from him
Hi guys, just to say, that as a frenchman, we typicaly don't use Michelin Guide, un fact, I think that now, it's more to attract people near France, because you guessed it, if you have a problem with your tires, they will be sold massively in this part of Europe.
Good video and I'm happy that someone finaly talks about France.
A la revoyure mon amis Americain.
14:12 I laughed so hard when I saw this🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
I'd love to see a food theory on germany's bread and why they have so *many* different kinds of bread -and maybe even rank some of the more common ones if you can get your hands on them-
Until 1870 or so what we now call Germany was like 500 different little countries.
@@LanMandragon1720 so....?
11:53 ah yes my favorite country Europe
The thing that annoys me about nice restaurants at least in the US is that the waiters/waitresses never just leave you alone. I don't need you to ask me if everything is ok or to refill my water every 5 mins 😩😩
Completely agree! Attentive service staff if you need their help is one thing, but breathing down diners' necks (probably because you've been trained that this is thr best way to get high tips) is just disruptive 😣
Really? I get ignored most of the time
How I wish my waiters/waitresses were attentive 😂
Some countries like the Netherlands have it in the culture for waiters to not bother clients too much. You have standard stuff like drinks, menu, food, and you will be left alone. You can stick your hand up if you need anything.
I think the general public always gets that thought where they find themselves really enjoying street food. But also thoughts of what "good" food could look like collides with what you might think of as "bad" food. I can see how it's no wonder that street food had become such a thing a while ago ^^
7:04: wanna break from the ads?
Then go to russia :D
The thing about getting a michelin star is the fine dininges of the experience. Like if you go to south america the best food isn’t always going to be “refined”. The fact that it taste’s great doesn’t matter to the michelin guide.
The Michelin star is given for the overall dining experience, not just food itself.
Thank you for this video.
I was getting some suspicious vibes from the michelin star system when I ate at two different restaurants rated the same score of 2 stars.
One of them, a restaurant in Brazil, was probably the most interesting culinary experience I’ve ever had, full of intricate flavors and combinations I had never tasted before.
The other, a restaurant in Switzerland, had a pretty good bison steak. And that’s it I guess?
12:07 | MatPat, im so patriotic that i can sense the word "Independence" through almost any language barrier. Also, the French revolution is related to America's in a couple of ways, and they didnt seem to make much of a difference. Legit just L - Independence. A sign that we are cooler and they can just go ahead and take the L lmfaooo
Food theory idea: how much does texture really affect taste and preference? It varies from person to person but is there a way to get around it for people with an aversion to certain textures?
Close your eyes and zone out it will distract you and you can focus more on the taste
It makes total sense, I live in Denver and I got curious and Googled the michelin star restaurants in the city and it was Japanese French restaurants.
I love when Mat talks about random things that I already know about. Gets me all giddy to listen.
Wait so if I had ONE Michelin star i’m better than 99% of the world?
Sadly, as this video proves, no. It just means you resemble France more closely than 99% of the world.
So then it means I’m 99% more French then everyone else?
@@Firebug_The_Arsonist ye
@@firdanharbima6997 pog
@@CosmicPlatonix Well it is partially French biased, but it's disingenuous to say that it is 100% about how French the restaurant is.
6:00 what is that demon in the back of the car
A baby
This episode was very informative and educational. I always thought the number of Michelin stars you have decides how good of a restaurant you are but apparently not. It felt like there was a lot more facts than in previous videos. The video taught me Geography, History and way more about the 1900s origins of Michelin’s business tactics. As usual a great Food Theory video. Can’t wait for the next one. Thanks Mat Pat.
From Anonymous Writer. 😁😀
Good
Thank
You
@@wing_king Was there someone else commenting or are you just replying to yourself?
what a fitting sponsor for this episode, thanks you Geico for sponsoring this episode because it just every fitting
eyoo germans in the first 4! lul
just found it funny because i'm german