Michelin Adds Eight Miami Restaurants to Its Florida Guide

The Michelin Guide is alive and well and working its way through Miami yet again.

Yesterday, Michelin announced eight Miami additions to its Florida Michelin Guide. The establishments were listed as "New" on the Michelin Guide, allowing diners to seek out discoveries.

In case you're wondering — no, you did not miss out on the annual Michelin announcement of Bib Gourmands and stars. From time to time, Michelin "teases" its annual guides by releasing small lists in spotlighted cities.

In a release, Gwendal Poullennec, international director of the Michelin Guides, explained the announcement. "By revealing some of the new additions made by our inspectors throughout the year, we enhance our digital tools to further strengthen the ties that bind us to food lovers."

In the release, Michelin did say that any (or all) of these restaurants could receive Bib Gourmand or star designations during the annual star ceremony.

So what does this mean for Miami dining?

First and foremost, it means that Michelin's team of inspectors is actively in Miami, seeking out restaurants to add to the 2023 Florida Michelin Guide. In addition, a restaurant must earn its spot in the guide each year. When the Florida Guide was announced in June 2022, 65 Miami restaurants earned a spot in the guide, with ten restaurants earning one star. L'Atelier de Joël Robuchon was the sole restaurant to receive two stars. No Miami restaurants achieved the rare three-star status reserved for outstanding establishments like the French Laundry, Alinea, and Eleven Madison Park.

Michelin's inspectors work for the guide and dine incognito. According to "A Day in the Life of an Inspector," published on the Michelin site in 2019, "An inspector's primary job is twofold: to make sure the restaurants and pubs already in the guide are still recommendable and to search out new establishments to add to the guide." The inspectors are also tasked with judging only the food on the plate and drink in the glass — "the restaurant could be the swankiest, most comfortable place in the world, but if the food isn't that great, we aren't going to have it in our guide."

The eight restaurants chosen yesterday come as a surprise, mostly because some haven't been open long enough to establish themselves. Walrus Rodeo, for example, opened less than two months ago. The small restaurant, by the owners of one-Michelin-starred Boia De serves wood-fired dishes at a small 32-seat restaurant just steps from its culinary sibling. The Tambourine Room at the Carillon Miami Wellness Resort opened at the very end of November, and Michael Beltran's Brasserie Laurel opened the first week of December 2022. Many traditional restaurant critics give an establishment a few months to work out the kinks before a formal review. It stands to wonder if any newly opened restaurants were visited and didn't pass muster because they didn't get their sea legs yet.

Fiola Miami, the tony Coral Gables restaurant that's an offshoot of chef Fabio Trabocchi's one-Michelin-starred Fiola in Washington D.C., was finally recognized by Michelin this time around, and Michael Beltran's the Gibson Room also received a place in the guide, making Beltran the most recognized chef in Miami by Michelin. His restaurant, Ariete, earned a Michelin star, Chug's Diner received a Bib Gourmand, and Nave received a mention.

Other restaurants added to the list include Rosie's, the delightful Little River restaurant run by the husband-and-wife team of Akino and Jamila West, the upscale Lido at the Four Seasons Hotel at the Surf Club,  and chef Michael Bolen's experiential Lion & the Rambler.

As of now, no date or place has been set for the 2023 Michelin Florida Star Revelation Ceremony. Last year, the ceremony was held in June in Orlando. This year, it wouldn't be a surprise if it were held in Miami. For now, we'll just have to wait and see.

To see the Michelin announcement and read what it had to say about each of the eight new Miami Guide additions, visit guide.michelin.com.