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The Top Countries For Michelin 3-Star Restaurants [Infographic]

This article is more than 6 years old.

Which countries can lay claim to having the most luxurious restaurants along with some of the planet's most exquisite culinary experiences? The Michelin Guide has been awarding stars to select establishments for excellence since 1926. One star denotes a very good restaurant in its category while a second stands for excellent cooking that's worth a detour. An establishment with three stars can boast exceptional cuisine worth a special journey. Even though very few restaurants manage to make it into three-star territory, Japan has 28 of them, the highest number in the world according to German blog Trois Etoilles.

France comes a close second behind Japan with 27 three-star establishments including one in Monte Carlo.  The United States is in third place with 14 in total. Broken down, New York has five, San Francisco has four, Chicago has two and the others can be found in Los Gatos, St. Helena and Yountville. Back in 2010, the Wall Street Journal reported that some western chefs were finding Japan's growing collection of three-star restaurants hard to stomach. Some observers questioned whether the alleged leniency in handing out stars was a ploy to help Michelin establish itself in Japan. It can also be argued that the country's cuisine deserves to be held in high esteem regardless, something which can be seen by the fact that New York has the most Michelin starred Japanese restaurants outside of Japan itself.

*Click below to enlarge (charted by Statista)

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