List of Michelin-starred restaurants in California
Adapted from Wikipedia Β· Discoverer experience
As of the 2025 Michelin Guide, there are 87 restaurants in California that hold a Michelin star.
The Michelin Guides have been published by the French tire company Michelin since 1900. They were created to help drivers find good places to eat and to encourage people to use their cars more, which would mean more tire sales for Michelin. Over time, the stars given to restaurants became very important.
Inspectors who are experts visit these restaurants many times. They look at five important things: the quality of the food, how well the food is cooked, how the chefβs style shows in the meal, if the price is fair, and if all the inspectors agree on their ratings. If they all agree, a restaurant can earn one to three stars. One star means the food is very good and worth stopping for. Two stars mean the cooking is excellent and worth a special trip. Three stars mean the food is amazing and worth traveling far to taste. These stars can change each year as restaurants are checked again and again.
The guide for California started in 2019 after combining guides for San Francisco and Los Angeles. The San Francisco guide began in 2007 and included cities like Oakland, San Jose, and Berkeley, plus areas known for wine such as Napa and Sonoma. Los Angeles had its own guide for a short time but it stopped in 2010. The statewide guide for California restarted in 2019 but paused for a while because of the COVID-19 pandemic and wildfires in California.
2019β2025 statewide lists
Starting in 2019, the Michelin Guide began covering all of California. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic and wildfires in California, the guide did not release a list for California in 2020.
Northern California
Southern California
2008β2018 Los Angeles lists
The Michelin Guide stopped publishing guides for the Los Angeles area in 2010 because of the economic situation.
| Name | Cuisine | Location | 2008 | 2009 | 2010β2018 No Guide |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Asanebo | Japanese | Los Angeles β Studio City | |||
| Bastide | French | West Hollywood | Closed | ||
| CUT by Wolfgang Puck | American, Steakhouse | Beverly Hills | |||
| Hatfield's | American | Los Angeles β Hollywood | β | Closed | |
| Joe's Restaurant | New American | Los Angeles β Venice | β | Closed | |
| La Botte | Italian | Santa Monica | Closed | ||
| The Dining Room at the Langham Huntington | Contemporary | Pasadena | |||
| Matsuhisa | Japanese | Beverly Hills | β | ||
| MΓ©lisse | Seafood | Santa Monica | |||
| Mori Sushi | Japanese | Los Angeles β Sawtelle | |||
| Ortolan | French | Los Angeles | Closed | ||
| Osteria Mozza | Italian | Los Angeles β Hollywood | β | ||
| Patina | French, American | Los Angeles β Downtown | |||
| Providence | Seafood | Los Angeles β Hollywood | |||
| Saddle Peak Lodge | American, Californian | Calabasas | β | ||
| Sona | French | West Hollywood | Closed | ||
| Spago | Californian | Beverly Hills | |||
| Sushi Zo | Japanese | Los Angeles β Downtown | β | ||
| Trattoria Tre Venezie | Italian | Pasadena | Closed | ||
| Urasawa | Japanese | Beverly Hills | |||
| Valentino | Italian | Santa Monica | Closed | ||
| Water Grill | American, Seafood | Los Angeles β Downtown | |||
| Reference | |||||
2007β2018 San Francisco Bay Area and Wine Country lists
Related articles
This article is a child-friendly adaptation of the Wikipedia article on List of Michelin-starred restaurants in California, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
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