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After years of arguing about New York Times stars and Zagat numbers, the new Michelin ratings are out and grade inflation is over for New York City restaurants.
Michelin, the French tire company that wrote the book on hotels and restaurants for early auto drivers, has always been stingy with its stars. Although American diners boast about five-star restaurants, Michelin's famous red guides give no more than three.
Mere mention without stars is honorable enough, as stars are awarded cautiously and only for food, not folderol. So the good places get one star, a handful of the best that are "worth a detour" merit two; a very few top, chef-driven restaurants worthy of a "special journey" get three stars. In all of Europe there are barely a dozen three-star restaurants.
In New York only four expensive, mostly French, restaurants rated three stars in Michelin's first critique of New York City, the 2006 guide released this month. Foodies with a taste for Euro-centric meals and show-off bills could guess them all: Alain Ducasse, Jean-Georges, Le Bernardin and Per Se, just opened by the French Laundry's Thomas Keller.
The two-stars choices are cut from the same heavy damask and also only four: David Bouley's Bouley and sister Danube, Daniel Boulud's Daniel and Masa, the high-rise sushi bar next to Per Se.
Tastier were Michelin's 31 one-stars, a larger class that included more from Boulud, Jean-Georges and other usual suspects.
Yet a few choices steer visiting diners with more imagination and fun: Saul on faraway Smith Street in Brooklyn, the Spotted Pig with Mario Batali's offal pub grub, the Modern's new museum restaurant, WD-50's outre-edge scallops and celery noodles and Peter Luger's grand old porterhouse.
Is Michelin right about or for New York?
Sure, already some of the fortunate star-struck want more and gave the French an authentic Manhattan cheer: We wuz robbed.