South Bay, Peninsula Restaurants Earn Michelin Stars

Written by Joan Dentler

Several stellar local eateries have been awarded stars by the bible of the restaurant world, the Michelin Guide.

Palo Alto's Baume and Manresa in Los Gatos are among seven restaurants in the Guide that earned two stars for excellent cuisine and the "worth a detour" praise.

San Mateo's Wakuriya and All Spice, join Woodside's The Village Pub and Menlo Park's Madera as Peninsula restaurants receiving one star ratings.

Chez TJ in Mountain View and Plumed Horse in Saratoga also got a star.

Local anonymous, professional inspectors select restaurants, using the celebrated Michelin food star-rating system. 

A number of other nearby restaurants have been included in the 2014 edition of the Michelin Guide San Francisco Bay Area & Wine Country.

The other two-starred restaurants are:

Atelier Crenn in the Marina district of San Francisco
Benu in the SoMa district of San Francisco
Coi in the North Beach area of San Francisco
Quince in the North Beach area of San Francisco
Saison in the Mission district of San Francisco

The one-starred restaurants are: 

Acquerello, Nob Hill district of San Francisco
All Spice, San Mateo in the Peninsula
Ame, SoMa district of San Francisco
Auberge du Soleil, Napa Valley of Wine Country
Aziza, Richmond and Sunset district of San Francico
Bouchon, Napa Valley of Wine Country
Boulevard, SoMa district of San Francisco
Campton Place, financial district of San Francisco
Chez TJ, Mountain View in the South Bay
Commis, Oakland in the East Bay
Farmhouse Inn & Restaurant, Sonoma County in Wine Country
Gary Danko, North Beach district of San Francisco
Keiko a Nob Hill, Nob Hill district of San Francisco
La Folie, Nob Hill district of San FranciscoLa Toque, Napa Valley of Wine Country
Luce, SoMa district of San Francisco
Madera, Menlo Park in the Peninsula
Madrona Manor, Sonoma County in Wine Country
Michael Mina, financial district of San Francisco
Plumed Horse, Saratoga in the South Bay
Solbar, Napa Valley of Wine Country
Sons & Daughters, Nob Hill district of San Francisco
SPQR, Marina district of San Francisco
Spruce, Marina district of San Francisco
State Bird Provisions, Civic Center of San Francisco
Terra, Napa Valley of Wine Country
Terrapin Creek, Sonoma County of Wine Country
The Village Pub, Woodside in the Peninsula
Wakuriya, San Mateo in the Peninsula

The restaurant Quince in San Francisco has been elevated from one to two stars. Run by the culinary couple of Lindsay and Michael Tusk, the restaurant, which has been a long-standing one star in the Michelin Guide San Francisco Bay Area & Wine Country, offers a cuisine "with Italian inspiration in a warm and welcoming environment."

In the one star category, State Bird Provisions has been awarded its first Michelin star.

"In this unique restaurant, the husband-and-wife duo of Stuart Brioza and Nicole Krasinski serve a truly creative California cuisine presented in dim sum style that is unlike any other," Michelin said in a press release.

San Francisco's perennial three-star restaurants—The French Laundry and The Restaurant at Meadowood—maintained their status in the 2014 guide.
A Michelin three-star rating is considered the ultimate international recognition in the culinary world, with just more than 100 restaurants currently holding the distinction, according to the guide.

"The 2014 selection confirms the quality of San Francisco's culinary scene, which continues at a remarkably high level of creativity, based on local Northern California ingredients used in a contemporary way," said Michael Ellis, international director of the Michelin Guides.

This year, 38 restaurants spread throughout the city, Bay Area and Wine Country received a coveted Michelin star rating. 

The 2014 edition further highlights the increased offering of good value for the money with Michelin inspectors selecting 83 Bib Gourmand restaurants, a record number for the guide first published in 2006.

In fact, 20 percent of the total 518 restaurants listed in the Michelin Guide San Francisco Bay Area & Wine Country are in the guide's "under $25" category.
With three new food styles included in this year's guide— Caribbean, Sri Lankan and Argentinian—Michelin inspectors recognized a total of 46 cuisines, reflecting San Francisco's rich diversity of cultures, according to Michelin.

San Francisco is one of three cities in the U.S. where Michelin publishes an annual guide. 

Earlier this year the Michelin Guide New York City 2014 went on sale. Next month the Michelin Guide Chicago 2014 will also go on sale Nov. 13.

Have you been to any of the Michelin star restaurants? Tell us about it in the comments.