Washington, D.C. Michelin Guide Fêted at French Ambassador's Residence
The wait is finally over. On October 13, Michelin released its first ever Washington, D.C. guide. And what better way to fête this momentous occasion than at a truly elegant party at the gorgeous French Ambassador's residence hosted by the Ambassador of France to the United States, Gérard Araud.
A guest list that included the crème de la crème of D.C. celebrated the recently awarded Michelin-starred restaurants and their respective chefs over flutes of champagne, savory canapes and a sweet symphony of delicious mignardises. All while Michelin's jovial Bibendum (or also known as the Michelin Man in the U.S.) greeted, mingled and posed with invitees.
Midway through the evening, Ambassador Araud provided opening and congratulatory remarks as well as taught the crowd how to correctly pronounce 'Michelin,' which elicited a hearty laughter. Afterwards, Michelin's International Director Michael Ellis reflected on the positive and exciting evolution of the DC dining scene and then asked les vainqueurs, one-by-one, to come up. One of the most endearing moments was seeing Chef Patrick O'Connell of The Inn at Little Washington being acknowledged. Why? Because in 2014 he said that he would like to see Michelin to come to DC. Not only did his wish come true but a dream was realized, as his restaurant (the only one in Virginia) was one of three to receive two stars.
So which other restaurants were awarded these coveted stars? Eleven others, twelve total. None were granted three stars deemed as 'exceptional cuisine, worth of a special journey', but three received two stars, which signify 'excellent cooking, worth a detour' and nine earned one star, meaning 'very good cooking in its category.' Without further ado here is the list -- let's just say that the reservations at these places will be a little harder to attain and the lines will be little longer. But hey, that's the price you pay when the city you live in suddenly becomes internationally-recognized in the culinary arena.
Two Stars
** Minibar (Chef Jose Andres)
** The Inn at Little Washington (Chef Patrick O'Connell)
** Pineapple and Pearls (Chef Aaron Silverman)
One Star
*Blue Duck Tavern (Chef Franck Loquet)
*Kinship (Chef Eric Ziebold)
*Rose's Luxury (Chef Aaron Silverman)
*The Dabney (Chef Jeremiah Langhorne)
*Plume (Chef Ralf Schlegel)
*Tail Up Goat (Chef Jon Sybert)
*Masseria (Chef Nicholas Stefanelli)
*Fiola (Chef Fabio Trabocchi)
*Sushi Taro (Chef Nobu Yamazaki)
Félicitations to all! A great start, but that said, I do hope that next year, we will see female chefs being recognized and an appearance of other deserving restaurants, such as Komi, Rasika, Marcel's, Little Serow, Centrolina, Indique and Convivial.
To top off this post, here are some photos of cette soirée inoubliable:
My best friend, Laetitia of French Twist DC, Bibendum and me
Les Mignardises - Canelés, Meringues, Guimauve, Marcarons and Chocolate delice
All of the Michelin-starred Chefs with Chef Patrick O'Connell at the mic.
Santé!
Ambassador Gerard Araud, Social Secretary Francesa Craig and friends
Bibendum showing off his best side
Bibendum with Chef Nobu Yamazaki of Sushi Taro
