The Michelin Guide is coming to Atlanta. Is it worth $1 million?

The restaurant reviewing Michelin Guide is coming to Atlanta. Michelin Media announced in July that it will release its first ever selections for the city this fall. That means that some of Atlanta's top restaurants will be getting Michelin's coveted one-, two- or three-star designations. A statement from the company says that its reviewers are already in the field, which they describe as “brimming with innovation and talent.” GPB’s Orlando Montoya spoke about the guide with Mike Jordan, a James Beard Award-nominated Atlant- based food writer whose work has appeared in numerous publications. He's also senior editor for Black culture at The Atlanta Journal Constitution.

Orlando Montoya: Let's talk about the Michelin Guide. What makes it different than the many media outlets where you can learn about where to eat in a particular city?

Mike Jordan: What gives it the esteem that it enjoys is that it prides itself on being a very top-tier, very elite sort of organization in terms of how it judges and ranks restaurants. You have the James Beard Foundation, which also gives out very high-level culinary awards. You have World's 50 Best. So it's not the only one. But Michelin's global status as a very top-level guide gives it some esteem. And it's very, very difficult to get even one Michelin star. So that gives it some prestige.

Orlando Montoya: Michelin reviewers are famously anonymous and pay for their own meals. Is there still a demand for that type of restaurant review in today's world?

Mike Jordan: That is a great question. I see that there is at least the idea that the anonymous reviewer is to be the most respected and the most trusted. Today, with social media and with so many “foodies,” you are more likely to know and probably have some trust for that individual because you get to know who they are. It also leads to some impropriety sometimes because, if you're better known, you can market and brand yourself and then sometimes there's some money that gets paid. At the same time, the Michelin Guide famously does not hide the fact that it accepts money to come into a destination and to send its reviewers free.

Orlando Montoya: Yeah, Atlanta tourism officials say that they’re spending $1,000,000 to bring the Michelin Guide here. Is it worth it?

Mike Jordan: Well, I think that's a great question for the Atlanta Convention Visitors Bureau. What I think the calculus they're making is: If we want to show off ourselves as a serious world-class city, we have to be a world-class dining city. And Michelin sort of holds the keys to that in a lot of people's opinion. So I would say possibly we will have to find out when the announcements come out, I think.

Orlando Montoya: What happens to restaurants that get one of its coveted stars?

Mike Jordan: Well, they can always expect an a massive uptick in business. The pressure on everyone right now is very high because, although I'm sure many restaurants are looking to say, ‘Well, we may not get it this year but we know we need to start working towards it one day,’ the goal is to get a Michelin star. If you get a star, you can't really go back because it really looks a particular way if you had a star and that star goes away.  It’s not permanent. So then it looks like something's wrong. It puts you up in the high altitudes.  But it's rare air that you're not guaranteed to continue breathing.

Orlando Montoya: Is there any downside to a star?

Mike Jordan: Again, now you have to sort of be this thing that got you the star forever. And a lot of restaurants thrive on creativity. And also there's a fine dining expectation. Michelin is famously skewed towards those really almost like edible flowers and everything looks almost like it's been architected other than being cooked. But the expectation is that you now put a higher level of investment on the overall experience. So the price of business will definitely go up.

Orlando Montoya: The price of the check will, too!

Mike Jordan: The price of the tip and everything! You know, the money is there. But if you're playing in this field, you just sort of have to know that that's what comes with it. And I always think it's interesting to juxtapose that the irony is that this is a tire company. ... And everyone's always like: Is it the same Michelin? It's the exact same Michelin.

Orlando Montoya: Well, it's a travel guide. And so they also rank hotels. And I know that in the Michelin travel guide for hotels, there are some Georgia hotels that are not in metro Atlanta. I think there’s one in Greensboro and one on Sea Island. Will it be the same with the restaurants as well? Might they go farther afield?

Mike Jordan: This is a great question, because this is one of the things I've been pointing out in side conversations about this. My understanding is this is metro Atlanta and the Atlanta Convention and Visitors Bureau. I heard some rumors that the governor's office kind of helped in the background as well. So I don't know how true that is. But I heard it from reliable sources. But here's what I think is really interesting. At the James Beard Awards in 2022, the outstanding chef overall, nationally, was Mashama Bailey from Savannah. You know her as the chef and operator-owner of The Grey. I don't think Savannah is going to be included in this. So think about that. What we know is, by judging standards, by the Beard standards, one of this country's best restaurants will not qualify to get a Michelin star.  So it will not include some of the other destinations.  And Savannah has fantastic restaurants that are not just The Grey. Florida has several cities. I believe we're just talking about metro Atlanta for this one.

Orlando Montoya: Is there an advantage for the rest of Atlanta's culinary scene to have this here?

Mike Jordan: There are dueling viewpoints on this. I say yes because it gives us a new reason to market ourselves and to be proud of what we're doing. And I think it's always good when everyone's inspired to put forward their best work. But there are some chefs who feel as though this is going to make it more of a weirdly competitive city in culinary [terms] than it already is, that it's going to have some effect on the camaraderie of the culinary community. Because this is a place where there's a lot of culinary collaboration. Some chefs are afraid that this will make people overly competitive and maybe a bit bougie. Again, we won't know until the first winners — if there are any, because we're not guaranteed any stars, either. We could put this money forward and they could come and they could say, ‘You know what, you’re not quite there yet, Atlanta. We'll see what happens next year.’ That is a possibility. We're not guaranteed.

Orlando Montoya: What are you predicting? I mean, as far as restaurants, any ones that are on the list for you?

Mike Jordan: I'm always careful because a lot of restaurants are doing great work and they may not be what Michelin has traditionally seen as places that are worthy. One place that I think that has a really good shot, at least from the experience and what I've seen them doing is Mujo, which is a sushi restaurant. I've never had sushi that way at all. And it is not cheap. But it doesn't — it doesn't pretend to want to be cheap. I think that there are several places. I would love to see a Black chef in Atlanta get a Michelin star because the city is so driven by Black culture and Black food culture. But again, it's not up to me.

Orlando Montoya: According to the food industry website The Chef’s Pencil, only three Black chefs have received a Michelin star since the guide debuted in the U.S. in 2005. So does the Michelin Guide reflect underrepresentation of people of color in the highest rungs of the restaurant industry or does it perpetuate it?

Mike Jordan: I think it is part of an existing system that's gone on for a long time in terms of: when you think about what are the most exquisite cuisines in the world, French cuisine comes up quite often. You never really hear about African cuisine. And then when we talk about soul food and Southern cuisine, we know that those were directly influenced by the folks who were cooking, which many times were the enslaved people brought over from the African diaspora. So it's going to be important for Michelin and the culinary world at large to not be so narrow-minded and have this expectation that if you did not go through the Culinary Institute of America or any other high-level institution, then you are still thriving and aspiring towards that goal. There's high-level execution and great culinary artistry and amazing things being done in all types of cuisines.

Orlando Montoya: I appreciate your time today. Thank you for joining me.

Mike Jordan: Thank you, Orlando.