My wife and I have just returned after a foodie long weekend.  It was our gift to one another for our wedding anniversary, and after toying with the idea of a European city break, we decided to do a local restaurant tour and ended up eating and staying at three different Michelin starred restaurants.  Don’t get me wrong – I’m no food snob and know that a Michelin star is not the be all and end all, but these were three restaurants we really wanted to try out.

The thing is though, each restaurant was very different – not the genre of food (I’d guess they’d each describe themselves as “modern European cuisine” – I’ll talk more about the food another time), but the style and atmosphere was completely different across the three.  So it made me question what commonality got them their stars, and why have other similar restaurants not got one?

Le Champignon Sauvage in Cheltenham for example was traditional in approach.  The front-of-house was very discrete (but chatty if you wanted it), and the room fairly simple and spaced out, so it is had quite a formal atmosphere with an a la carte menu.  The Crown at Whitebrook, South Wales felt as much like a small boutique hotel as a gourmet restaurant, with more of an informal atmosphere, and with an optional taster menu.  Finally the Walnut Tree near Abergavenny in South Wales felt more like a gastro-pub with bustling atmosphere, fast service and a small bar area that felt like an intimate pub.  Interestingly, none of these were what I would call classically formal dining – they generally had manageable wine lists (no 50 page catalogues here) didn’t feel stuffy or intimidating.

So what is the commonality?  I’m sure that the dishes are the main thing, with quality, creativity, and possibly locality and seasonality playing a part, but I suspect that consistency is key – that if you go in one day you get exactly the same standard as someone the next day.  In our experience, premises are always of a high standard of finish, and all food (down to the bread) are generally homemade.  From memory I think they’ve always had amuse-bouche before and petit four after the meal as well.

But I still don’t know what gives them the edge.  I don’t know what is different about say the Walnut Tree and many other restaurants of a similar style such as Stephen Terry’s Hardwicke or Matt Tebbutt’s Foxhunter which are both just down the road the Walnut Tree – clearly there is something, but I don’t know what that is.  Or indeed what gives Le Champignon Sauvage its second star over The Crown (maybe it’s the fact that the Chef David Everitt-Matthias has never missed a service in 25 years, surely the ultimate in consistency).  I suspect the criteria are closely guarded.

I do have to say though that I am a fan of the Michelin Guide – not so much to chase stars, but for its extensive list of other commended eateries which is incredibly valuable when you are away from home.  We bought the guide last year, and now keep it in the car and have come across a few gems in our travels – not budget-breaking fine dining establishments, just nice food pubs and restaurants that we wouldn’t have otherwise known about when we are visiting an area of the country we don’t know, that we know have been reviewed and recommended so that we aren’t taking a gamble.  And that is what it what it was originally written for – as a guide to help touring drivers to find decent eateries and accommodation.  I can highly recommend it!