Are you ready? Last month, the MICHELIN Guide announced its newest destination was Atlanta, Georgia shortly after revealing that the Guide would be coming to Colorado later this year. However, today marks a new milestone for the Guide as they enter Argentina. “For some time now, our team of anonymous inspectors has been putting Buenos Aires and Mendoza on their radar and observing the evolution of their respective food scenes," explains Gwendal Poullennec, International Director of the MICHELIN Guide. "Boasting a rich culinary heritage—which has been shaped by centuries of hectic history, and consecutive waves of migrations, creating a unique cultural melting pot—that country has an innate sense of hospitality, as well as a true taste for dining and going out."
This sentiment is echoed by Argentinian Minister of Tourism and Sports, Mr. Matías Lammens. "The arrival of the MICHELIN Guide in Argentina is a before and after for both our gastronomy and Argentine tourism. We are working together with the public and private sectors to make our country the leading gastronomic destination in Latin America and one of the most attractive in the world, and this announcement is proof of that." The first selection debuting this November will include a myriad of points of interest meant to tantalize tastebuds with their culinary diversity.
"Buenos Aires and Mendoza are two gourmet destinations that fully deserve to be discovered and promoted," says Poullennec. "We can’t wait to present our first Argentinian restaurant selection, which our inspectors have already started to compile in the field, and to share with local food lovers and international visitors alike the culinary wonders we have found." And while we have a few months until all is revealed, "I have no doubt that this path we are taking together with the MICHELIN Guide will become a milestone that will last for many decades to come," adds Lammens.
History and Methodology
The upcoming Argentina restaurant selection follows MICHELIN’s historical methodology, based on 5 universal criteria, to ensure each destination’s selection equity:
1) quality products
2) the harmony of flavors
3) the mastery of cooking techniques
4) the voice and personality of the chef reflected in the cuisine
5) consistency between each visit and throughout the menu (each restaurant is inspected several times a year)
The MICHELIN Guide was first published in France in 1900 as an accompaniment to tire sales providing practical advice on where to dine and stay to local motorists. MICHELIN’s Inspectors still adhere to the same criteria and manner of selection used from launch, and apply them to destinations around the world.
MICHELIN published its first North American Guide in 2005 for New York. Since then, Guides have been added in Atlanta; California; Chicago; Colorado; Miami/Orlando/Tampa, Florida; Washington, D.C.; Toronto; and Vancouver.
