Our 40 Favorite Michelin Star Restaurants In The US, Ranked

The Michelin Guide, which started in 1900 as a simple handbook for travelers, has since morphed into one of the most authoritative guides in the restaurant business. Critics travel the world sampling the creations of various chefs, awarding one, two, or three stars to exceptional restaurants, or taking them away from those who have come up short. Winning or losing a Michelin star is a big deal for any establishment, to the point where some famous chefs don't want Michelin stars at all, finding that maintaining a star can be too stressful while losing one can be downright devastating.

Yet this guide remains formidably useful for any traveler who wants good food in a new place but doesn't know where to find it. The Michelin Guide was designed to help with that exact problem, but it is not the be-all and end-all. Other guides exist, but they don't quite carry the gravity or name recognition that Michelin does. So with that in mind, the following list presents a selection of the best Michelin-starred restaurants in the U.S., ranked by taking into consideration a wide range of lists, sources, and personal tastes.

This Washington, D.C. restaurant by Aaron Silverman, of Pineapple & Pearls, is more casual and approachable than its counterpart, though with one Michelin star rather than two. But the more relaxed atmosphere means the restaurant draws people of all types, from business folks to families with small children. The menu is equally varied, ranging from American-style buttermilk biscuits to caramelized cauliflower with Greek yogurt to miso-glazed short-rib in the style of Nobu and Joel Robuchon. Certainly worth a visit if you're not in the mood for the glitz and glamor or Pineapple & Pearls.

Citrin, in Santa Monica, is an excellent restaurant, but even better is Melisse, located at the back of Citrin and accessible through a side entrance. Both are run by chef Josiah Citrin, but Melisse stands out because of its bold flavors and ability to seamlessly fit classic French culinary training into modern expectations. Highlights include the mandarin tomato soup with an unexpected strawberry sorbet, and the duck "Rouennaise" with chanterelle mushrooms, cherry, and milk bread.

This 10-seater in New York City feels more like a bona fide speakeasy than a chef's counter. The door is unmarked and you must wait for someone to come and let you in after you ring the somewhat hidden doorbell. That is not where the exclusivity ends. At more than $500 per person, which includes service but not drinks, the price is prohibitive for most. But if you have the means, then by all means, enjoy the 20-course omakase dinner, including possibly the best nigiri you've ever had.

New York City has no shortage of good restaurants, so it's not easy to make it onto the list of top eateries. Estela stands firmly and proudly on that list. This small, intimate bistro serves new American fare for brunch, lunch, and dinner, and each meal is packed with consistently delicious options such as ricotta dumplings with mushrooms and pecorino, or Wagyu steak with Taleggio cheese. The menu is constantly changing, so you might not find those exact options, but something just as good will be there to replace them.

When State Bird Provisions first opened in San Francisco in 2012, it was nigh on impossible to get a table. Online reservations would disappear within seconds of being posted, and extremely long lines for walk-ins formed out the door a good two hours before opening time. Since then, and especially since an expansion in 2013, it has become a little easier to get a table. Now, more diners can pay reasonable prices for these delicious creations, most of which are small plates wheeled past the table on a cart, from which diners order food directly.

For such a large city, Miami doesn't have a lot of Michelin-starred restaurants, but if L'Atelier de Joel Robuchon is one of them, then one is enough. The low-lit setting is luxurious and intimate, creating the perfect space in which to enjoy sophisticated French-inspired creations. Diners can feast on a carefully curated tasting menu, or hand-pick items off the a la carte menu, which includes Joel Robuchon specialties like organic crispy poached egg served with caviar and smoked salmon.

Pineapple & Pearls, a land of dinner jackets and odes to the legendary Studio 54 nightclub in New York, is the kind of place you go to see and be seen, which is probably why you can find some great, show-stopping cocktails here. Don't miss the tableside absinthe cocktail made with apricot liqueur and Champagne. But even if you're not into the social scene, you can still enjoy a delicious meal here, and you may especially enjoy the beet- and saffron-infused crepes served with caviar and lemon crème fraîche.

This Brooklyn establishment is widely considered a wine bar, and you'll quickly see why as soon as you take a look at the wine menu. Not only is the selection vast, but it specializes in natural and organic wines that aren't bogged down with sediment or unwanted fizziness. But the place can more than hold its own in the culinary department, too, and the crowds who flock here day in and day out know this full well. Chef Nick Curtola is particularly adept at using yuzu in surprising and delicious ways, while any dish he makes without it will be just as satisfying.

If you like to see how the sausage is made, or the miso-glazed black cod in this case, this is the place to go. This Los Angeles restaurant only offers one seating per night, so reservations aren't normally easy to get, but if you can snag one, you'll find that the food, and the show, are worth the effort. Aside from eating delicious food, the most entertaining part of your evening will in fact be the opportunity to watch raw ingredients get turned into a full and complete dish, bursting with flavor. If you get confused along the way though, don't worry, as chef Brandon Hayato Go will provide explanations and guidance throughout the experience.

Gramercy Tavern is an institution in New York, a city that already boasts quite a few restaurants that can claim that title. One of the reasons for this is its building, a historic landmark. Another is its staying power, as it opened in long ago 1994. Yet another reason is the atmosphere, which can suit almost any occasion or preference, from casual lunch to fancy dinner and everything in between. But the most important component remains the food, which you can enjoy in the upscale dining room or more casual tavern, and which always features a seasonal component, with fresh vegetables currently dominating the summer selection.

It's as if Harbor House existed solely for the purpose of showing us that it is possible to run a successful northern California kitchen outside the San Francisco or Napa areas. And whether that's its true raison d'etre or not, it is surely worth a visit. For one, Harbor House, tucked away in Elk, in Mendocino County, has one of the most beautiful views of any dining room in California. Sit out on the porch or stare at the raging Pacific from just behind floor-to-ceiling, wall-to-wall windows. As for the food, many of the ingredients are foraged, often from the sea. So don't be surprised to find plenty of seaweed, sea lettuce, and kelp flavoring your food.

Presentation is important for any self-respecting restaurant, but for Saison in San Francisco, it's a way of life. The industrial chic setting is striking but warm, with cozy tones dotting the dining room to provide a sense of comfort and style. This dichotomy seems to extend to the food, which is served on plates that are carefully selected to enhance the aesthetic appeal of the dishes. But this restaurant isn't only about appearances. It has the walk to back up the talk, which you will notice immediately when you sample the seaweed and butter broth or practically everything else.

The name of this restaurant is a bit of a mouthful, and so is the food, in the best possible way. Much like his famous colleague Jean Georges Vongerichten, chef Gabriel Kreuther brings his Alsatian roots and classical French cooking training to a sophisticated corner of New York City, right by the New York Public Library and Bryant Park, whose history is featured throughout the inventive cocktail list. Just as inventive is the dining menu, where you have the option of choosing a chef's tasting menu, or your own courses, which on any given day may include the Alsatian-inspired sturgeon on sauerkraut tart or the decadent but sustainable imperial Ossetra caviar.

Quince, in San Francisco, represents the ideal pairing between Italian and Californian cuisine. It just so happens that northern California has the ideal climate in which to grow some of the top ingredients commonly used in Italian cooking, so diners get the experience of enjoying fresh Italian food made with ultra-local ingredients. What's more, chef Michael Tusk's specialty is pasta, which he somehow elevates from common dish to exquisite creation, particularly in the case of the beet-red homemade pasta paired with fine caviar.

Most of the restaurants on this list are magical in some way, but Blue Hill at Stone Barns in Tarrytown, New York, feels like living in a fairytale. The main building is literally a barn made of stones surrounded by flower gardens and expansive fields. In fact, Blue Hill at Stone Barns is not just a restaurant, but a working farm and education center, which allows guests to not only book a fabulous dining experience, but also a number of tours, including a visit to the innovation lab, where you can learn about the relationship between healthy soil and quality food.

If you like the idea of locally-produced food, it doesn't get much better than Single Thread, which is located on a 24-acre farm in the Sonoma wine valley. Much of the food you'll enjoy at this restaurant will have been grown on this very farm, so it's no surprise that the establishment boasts a big, fat green star for growing 70% of its produce on its organic farm and 100% of the olive oil it uses. And the radical freshness comes through in the food, brought out by the expert hands of chef Kyle Connaughton.

In the world of Michelin stars, when a restaurant earns three stars, it means it's worth a special trip just to visit that restaurant. In other words, it's a destination dining experience. That is definitely the case for the Inn at Little Washington, located in Washington, Virginia, more than an hour's drive outside the capital. This is the land of Shenandoah, but with items like wasabi sorbet and Petrossian Tsar Imperial Caviar on the menu, one would never know it. What's more, this restaurant also boasts a green star because chef O'Connell has been using locally sourced ingredients for more than 40 years, before it was even cool.

Alinea has been pushing boundaries and shifting paradigms for almost 20 years, and it is still going strong. The dishes continue to be as inventive as they are beautiful, with plates combining pork belly, curry, and bananas in an intricate presentation worthy of the Whitney. If Alinea's creations weren't designed to be eaten immediately, they'd be in a museum. But unlike, 20 years ago, Alinea is no longer alone in this game at home in Chicago or anywhere else, and if it wants to maintain its spot at the top, it may have to up the ante on the innovation.

Not only does this storied Yountville restaurant boast three Michelin stars, but it also has a green star, which means the establishment is a trailblazer when it comes to adopting sustainable practices. In this case, the restaurant runs on solar power and eschews toxic weatherproofing. Meanwhile, the carefully selected, sometimes practically unheard of ingredients at The French Laundry, are paired exquisitely by inventive chefs to create dishes such as golden watermelon gazpacho, served with finger limes and wild purslane. The wine list, too, contains a plethora of hard-to-find selections from across the world, along with local Napa Valley favorites.

This three Michelin-starred restaurant is a stalwart of the New York City fine dining scene and appears high on the list of a number of different high-end restaurant rankings. Chef Eric Ripert and his team specialize in fish, but if you're a meat-eater or a vegetarian, this restaurant will not disappoint. The rack of lamb is cooked to perfection, and the warm artichoke panaché with risotto might be one of the best items on the menu. But it doesn't stop there. Le Bernadin's wine program is special as its sommelier is none other than Aldo Sohm, who has won multiple accolades, including that of "Best Sommelier in the World," issued by the World Sommelier Association. And through it all, Le Bernardin is not stuffy. It's warm, welcoming, and ready to cater to needs you didn't even know you had.