In November, he was named the best chef in the world for the sixth year in a row.
Paris:
The Michelin Guide announced Monday the shocking decision to knock a star from Guy Savoy’s Parisian restaurant, often voted the best chef in the world.
The 69-year-old has had Michelin’s top three-star status since 2002 for his Monnaie de Paris restaurant overlooking the Seine, which has a sister version at Caesars Palace, Las Vegas.
In November, he was named best chef in the world for the sixth year in a row by La Liste, which collects thousands of reviews from around the world.
Savoy’s fame extends beyond the kitchen as an ambassador of the French “art de vivre” – he has emphatically rejected the fad for non-alcoholic drinks, for example – and he lent his voice to the French version of the Pixar film “Ratatouille”.
But that hasn’t stopped Michelin from downgrading its establishment to two stars in its latest edition, which will be published next Monday.
It did the same for Christopher Coutanceau’s chic seafood restaurant in La Rochelle.
“These are exceptional restaurants, so you can imagine these decisions are carefully considered, supported by numerous visits from our inspectors throughout the year,” Gwendal Poullennec, head of the guide, told AFP.
The reasons are not made public and are only communicated to the chiefs involved.
“For such important decisions, we involve not only French inspectors, but also some from other countries,” said Poullennec.
The move to downgrade restaurants has always been hugely controversial, especially since the suicide 20 years ago of Bernard Loiseau – a close friend of Savoy – after his restaurant lost a star.
A chef, Marc Veyrat, unsuccessfully sued the guide in 2019 after he was robbed of a star, saying he never wanted to see a Michelin inspector in his restaurants again.
In the latest edition of the guide, about 20 French restaurants have also been downgraded from two to one star.
It had not relegated anyone since 2019, aware of the difficulties caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Those difficulties continue with restaurants beset by staff shortages and, in the past year, skyrocketing prices.
But the guide says downgrades are now necessary to stay relevant.
“Yes, there are challenges, but they are challenges for everyone,” said Poullennec.
Created in 1900 by tire manufacturers Andre and Edouard Michelin as a guide for motorists, it now has editions in Europe, Asia, North and South America.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by DailyExpertNews staff and is being published from a syndicated feed.)
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