The Michelin Guide announced today that it will debut its first North American regional guide. The American South edition, to be released later this year, will include Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee and the pre-existing Atlanta guide. The rest of Georgia will not be considered for the guide.
Travel South USA, the Atlanta-based destination marketing organization for the southern U.S., has partnered with Michelin to bring the guide to the South.
“Our region has long deserved global recognition for its extraordinary farm-to-table cuisine, world-class seafood and rich food culture — crafted by some of the world’s most creative and talented chefs,” Liz Bittner, president and CEO of Atlanta-based Travel South USA, said in a prepared statement. “We couldn’t be prouder to be the first region in the country to showcase our culinary assets in big cities and small towns on a global stage.”
Restaurants across all six states will be eligible for inclusion in the guide, including in rural areas, according to the anonymous Chief Inspector for the Michelin Guide North America. At this time, only restaurants in metro Atlanta will be eligible among establishments in Georgia.
Travel South USA did not immediately respond to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s request for more information.
Michelin’s team of anonymous inspectors are already researching for the first American South guide, according to a news release. The restaurants selected for inclusion in the guide will be announced later this year at a ceremony held in a to-be-named city in the region.
The change will not have much of an effect on the Atlanta guide, which is now in its second year, according to Andrew Wilson, chief marketing officer and executive vice president for the Atlanta Convention and Visitors Bureau (ACVB), which helps to fund, market and promote the guide. “The city is going to continue to be represented in the guide,” Wilson said. “Consumers will search for restaurants in the guide and they will be presented (as) Atlanta just like they did before.”
Folding metro Atlanta restaurants into a regional Michelin guide will also come with a cost-saving benefit for the ACVB. “Before, the ACVB had to bear the cost of ceremonies and the selection process,” Wilson said. Costs associated with the regional guide will be underwritten by Travel South, he said. And the announcement ceremonies will rotate in different cities throughout the region.
Travel South was established in 1965 by a coalition of Southern state travel directors to promote, stimulate, foster and encourage travel to and within the region.
The Michelin Guide debuted in Atlanta in October 2023 and awarded five restaurants one Michelin star. The second guide in 2024 awarded four more restaurants with a star, rounding the total up to nine Michelin-starred restaurants in the metro Atlanta area.
The Michelin Guide, which is owned by the French tire manufacturer of the same name, made its debut at the 1900 World’s Fair in Paris as a handbook with maintenance guides, maps and listings of petrol stations, hotels and restaurants. It released its first North American guide in New York in 2005 and has since grown its presence in cities across the U.S., Canada and South America.
Restaurants are evaluated based on five criteria: quality products, the harmony of flavors, the mastery of cooking techniques, the voice and personality of the chef as reflected in the cuisine, and consistency between each visit and throughout the menu. Inspectors do not consider price or value in their evaluations of starred restaurants.
Michelin inspectors visit restaurants anonymously, and an inspector never visits the same place twice, but different inspectors would return to the restaurant to give it their own evaluations. Then they compare notes.
Editor’s note: This article has been updated to reflect Travel South’s history. An earlier edition of this story incorrectly stated that the organization began 20 years ago.
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