PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — For the first time, Philadelphia will be included in the famed Michelin Guide, highlighting the nation’s best restaurants.
Gov. Josh Shapiro and Mayor Cherelle Parker joined the guide’s international director and a slew of chefs for the official announcement at the Barnes Foundation Museum on Tuesday.
Shapiro, no stranger to the delights of Philadelphia dining, called it “an exciting, exciting day for Philadelphia.” However, the reaction from Philadelphians to the praise heaped on local restaurants might be, “Yeah, no kidding.”
While Michelin’s International Director Gwendal Poullenec did not directly acknowledge the guide’s attention to Philadelphia is long overdue, he did talk about the exhaustive review process, explaining that adding cities is a measured step.
“Michelin Guide inspectors remain a scarce resource,” he said. “It’s different inspectors going again and again to the same place so they can align on one common decision.”
Poullenec confirmed the inspectors have been out in Philadelphia for a while, deep undercover, which chef Colin Henderson, of Jean-Georges at the Four Seasons Hotel in Center City, said was a bit nerve-wracking. “Of course, I think it makes any chef nervous but it’s all for the good and it’s good for the city,” he said.
Chef Chad Williams of Friday, Saturday, Sunday in Rittenhouse also admitted he was a little nervous, but said the payoff will be worth it. “We really hope to showcase everything we have here, all the talent,” he said.
Henderson’s boss, Four Seasons executive chef Mark McDonnell, predicted inclusion in the guide would elevate the city’s dining scene even further.
“What will happen in the first year or two is that it might be just a small few restaurants will get selected, then everybody will notice the trends and what’s necessary, and then you’ll have a boom in years four, five and six.”
Philadelphia will join Washington, D.C., New York, Chicago and — also new this year — Boston, in Michelin’s Guide to Northeast Cities.