Michelin Guide Florida Restaurants Near Disney World
Michelin Guide Florida has debuted, bringing its starred rating system to the Miami, Orlando, and Tampa areas. This post covers the restaurants near Walt Disney World that received stars, Bib Gourmand distinctions, or recommendations from the tire company team.
For those who are unfamiliar with it, yes, the Michelin Guide is by that Michelin–the tire company. The French founders produced a small red guide filled with information for travelers, including recommendations for things to do. The goal was to help France’s nascent automobile industry, and in turn boost car and tire sales.
Over 100 years later, the Michelin Guide has taken on a life of its own, with over 30 million of the books sold worldwide. The tire company’s anonymous inspectors now rate over 40,000 establishments in over 24 territories across 4 continents. The latest region to receive a Michelin Guide is Florida, joining California, New York, Washington D.C., and Chicago as the other other locations in the United States to have Michelin coverage.
As silly as it might sound, the tire company’s iconic red guides have developed deep-seated reverence among chefs, restaurateurs, and food lovers around the globe. Many travelers seek out Michelin-recognized restaurants, going out of their way to dine at far-flung locations, enduring lengthy lines or virtual queues, and tirelessly attempting to score reservations.
We know this because we are Michelin devotees, and have done literally all of those things for Michelin meals. (And you thought virtual queues were only for Walt Disney World. Nope, they’re for Tokyo noodle shops, too!)
We aren’t alone. Tourists are frequent fixtures of Michelin-recognized establishments, and restaurants proudly display their accolades to lure wandering patrons inside. (The idea of aimlessly wandering past a restaurant might seem like a foreign concept, but most Michelin restaurants are in walkable cities.)
This is probably why Florida’s tourists boards paid the tire company a reported $1.5 million to produce a Michelin Guide to Florida. Michelin recognition is good for local tourism, especially among the coveted higher-spending international visitors.
The reason we love the Michelin Guide is simple:Â it’s credible and reliable. Although that $1.5 million might seem like a conflict of interest or veiled advertorial, it’s for the state as a whole (or at least the cities of Miami, Tampa, and Orlando) rather than specific restaurants. Michelin’s inspectors are anonymous, pay their own way, and have no real conflicts of interest with any specific restaurants they review.
You may not think this matters and is irrelevant in the internet age. Surely, crowd-sourced reviews on Yelp, TripAdvisor, and Google, aggregators like Eater, and social media recommendations surpass whatever Michelin can cobble together. Perhaps I’m overly cynical, but I strongly disagree.
Crowd-sourced sites have many downsides. For one thing, they can easily be gamed–one fake restaurant infamously rose to the top of TripAdvisor. For another thing, you don’t know anything about the random people leaving those reviews. Anyone can post anything online, including spectacularly bad opinions. There’s a lot of self selection bias at play, and even location bias. In touristy towns, places frequented by visitors are disproportionately reviewed, and more positively.
Other sites that “review” restaurants often feature embedded photos from Instagram or other social media platforms. Again, perhaps I’m overly cynical, but when a website doesn’t have its own content and descriptions are vague, that’s a red flag for me. Rather than calling themselves best of lists, those articles might be better described as “here’s what’s most popular in this city/region” compilations. There is a difference.
For us, this is not such an issue in the United States–and especially in the cities where the Michelin Guide Florida will be offering coverage. (Having a bit of knowledge about how the sausage is made, so to speak, there are numerous websites I do trust.) There’s actually no shortage of great resources for these domestic destinations.
However, that has not been the case when we’ve traveled elsewhere. While I’m sure there are excellent guides in the local languages, we haven’t had much luck with those.
Michelin has delivered for us time and time again, with some truly excellent experiences. Along the way, we’ve met incredible people and shared memorable moments–and of course, meals.
We honestly feel like we owe Michelin a debt of gratitude. Aside from vowing to always buy their tires, this post gushing about their guides seems like the best way to “repay” that.
If you’re apprehensive that the Michelin Guide is a list of highfalutin haute cuisine for pretentious people, we’re here to disabuse you of that notion. While it is true that the Michelin-starred restaurants are frequently (but not always) intimidating and unapproachable, that’s just one part of the guidebook.
And frankly, one that we seldom use. Most Michelin-starred restaurants make me uncomfortable. I wouldn’t even bother with the high end ones in cities like Miami, Los Angeles, Paris, or Tokyo. In other regions, I’d be open to them on a case by case basis.
The sweet spot for us is Michelin’s Bib Gourmand award. This honors ‘good quality, good value restaurants’ that is universally approachable. Bib Gourmand award winners are those that deliver stellar quality at prices in line with the local cost of living.
They can feature inventive and innovative dishes, but the focus is usually on simpler meals. In other words, you leave the restaurant satisfied and full. We’ve dined at dozens of Michelin Bib Gourmand restaurants, and have literally never had a bad experience.
The average cost of the ones we’ve done is usually around $15 to $40 per person, and the value has always been superb. These restaurants have run the gamut from California coastal to Japanese yakitori to French bistros to Italian ristorantes to the best pizza we’ve ever had anywhere…which was in Japan.
I could go on and on, gushing about the meals and conversations we’ve had at these Michelin-honored mom and pop establishments. The point is, if you’re ever traveling to places with Michelin Guide coverage, seek out the Bib Gourmands. They won’t break the bank, typically serve approachable and delicious cuisine, and the overall experience will be memorable. This is one of our top pieces of non-Disney travel advice–I’m glad I finally had an excuse for sneaking it in here.
With the real point of the post out of the way, let’s turn to the Michelin-recognized restaurants near Walt Disney World…
Four Orlando restaurants received one Michelin star: Capa, Soseki, Kadence, and Knife & Spoon at the Ritz-Carlton Orlando, Grande Lakes.
Capa is the only one of these at Walt Disney World, located on the 17th floor of the Four Seasons Orlando. Michelin offered this recommendation for Capa: “Kick things off with pan con tomate or pork belly with apple butter before indulging in a main dish, like flame-kissed ribeye with tamarind-ancho sauce. Patatas bravas, that Spanish ode to the potato, is a worthy side that demands attention, while artful plating, like the swipe of piquillo salsa accompanying the tender filet, is a calling card.”
Seven Central Florida restaurants received Bib Gourmand recognition: Bombay Street Kitchen, Domu, Papa Llama, the Ravenous Pig, the Strand, Swine & Sons, and Z Asian Vietnamese Kitchen. Domu was highlighted in our List of Great Restaurants Near Walt Disney World, as were a handful of Michelin’s recommended locations below.
It should go without saying, but even the Bib Gourmand quality restaurants at Walt Disney World–and there are several–wouldn’t be eligible for that award since none of them offer good value for money. There are plenty that offer good value by Disney standards, but none that are both commensurate quality and value by real world standards.
In addition to the Michelin-starred and Bib Gourmand restaurants, there’s another list of recommended Florida restaurants. To my knowledge, there’s no defined criteria for these establishments. (I’m not sure if this category is present in other guides–I’ve never seen it before.)
My guess is that this is essentially the same as Bib Gourmand, but without the requirement that these restaurants offer good value for money. That would explain how several Signature Dining options at Walt Disney World made the cut.
When it comes to Walt Disney World owned locations, the winners here were Citricos at the Grand Floridian and California Grill at Contemporary Resort. The former obviously merits inclusion, whereas I might question the latter with the new prix fixe menu, even though we enjoyed that.
Elsewhere on site at Walt Disney World, the Polite Pig and Morimoto Asia made the list at Disney Springs. Then there’s Sear + Sea at JW Marriott Bonnet Creek and Four Flamingos, A Richard Blais Florida Kitchen at Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress.
We’d be remiss if we didn’t also bring your attention to several restaurants off-site that made the cut. One particular highlight is Pizza Bruno, which is the best pizza in Orlando. (I’m honestly surprised this didn’t earn the Bib Gourmand distinction.)
Other favorites of ours include Kabooki Sushi and Se7en Bites. In the area resorts, Ravello at the Four Seasons Orlando (we’ve reviewed Goofy’s Good Morning Breakfast at Ravello, but presumably that’s not what got high marks with Michelin) and Primo at JW Marriott Grande Lakes Orlando also made the cut.
Visit the official website to browse all 118 restaurants featured in the Florida Michelin Guide.
As discussed in Victoria & Albert’s Reopening Date & Details, that will likely earn a Michelin star or two in next year’s guide. Walt Disney World’s flagship restaurant has long been considered “Michelin-caliber” among foodies, and if there are upgrades to the menu and ingredients to match the “upgrade” in price, it could achieve more than one star.
The only two other candidates for Michelin stars are Monsieur Paul and Takumi-Tei, both of which remain closed and were thus also ineligible this year. Our experiences at both have been on par with Michelin restaurants; I’m not sure whether being inside theme parks would disqualify them from consideration.
As for the recommended restaurants, I could see Jiko and Flying Fish joining that list now that they’ve reopened.
Then there are close calls like Topolino’s Terrace, Toledo Steakhouse, and a number of restaurants at Disney Springs. If California Grill’s prix fixe menu can make the cut, surely several more restaurants could, as well. (Perhaps the tire team reviewed California Grill before last October?)
Ultimately, we’re really pleased that Michelin Guide has expanded to Florida, and wish it could expand to other regions while maintaining its high standards and credibility. This should be a great resource for foodies visiting the state or even locals looking for new locations to try. (There are several spots on the Bib Gourmand list that we now “need” to do!)
It’ll also be interesting to see whether this has any impact on Walt Disney World dining. The company loves recognition (there’s even an “Awards & Accolades” page on the Disney Parks Blog), and even touts meaningless ones like those from 10Best and random readers’ choice awards. Michelin is the opposite of meaningless, so perhaps Disney will give its culinary teams the resources and encouragement necessary for restaurants other than just Victoria & Albert’s to be recognized.
Planning a Walt Disney World trip? Learn about hotels on our Walt Disney World Hotels Reviews page. For where to eat, read our Walt Disney World Restaurant Reviews. To save money on tickets or determine which type to buy, read our Tips for Saving Money on Walt Disney World Tickets post. Our What to Pack for Disney Trips post takes a unique look at clever items to take. For what to do and when to do it, our Walt Disney World Ride Guides will help. For comprehensive advice, the best place to start is our Walt Disney World Trip Planning Guide for everything you need to know!
Your Thoughts
Are you excited to dine at some of the restaurants recognized by Michelin Guide Florida or is this not your scene? Hopeful that more Walt Disney World restaurants make the lists in future years? Think any Central Florida spots were snubbed by the tire team in their inaugural edition? Do you agree or disagree with our assessments? Any questions we can help you answer? Hearing your feedback—even when you disagree with us—is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!
Here in France we of course do use a lot our so famous “red guide”. We’ve eaten in several one or two stars in Paris and frankly speaking, it is really delicious.
As for WDW, I would recommend Jiko (incredible desserts), Flying Fish, Tiffins and California Grill, both done during our last visit in April-may 2022.
I wouldn’t be so quick to write off all 1 star Michelin restaurants as pretentious and unapproachable. There are plenty that are reasonably priced and relatively casual(albeit none in Florida it seems)You just have to look for 1 stars that clearly aren’t offering a fine dining experience like a noodle shop or dim sum place. While you have to offer a fine dining experience to get 2 or 3 stars, Michelin has been giving 1 star to restaurants that lack in the service department because their food is that special for a while now.
I used to do some administrative work for the Michelin Guides (I wasn’t an inspector). The restaurants in the red book that aren’t starred or Bibs are still “recommended” by the inspectors — they’re just not the creme-de-la-creme starred spots or the best “value for money.”
For the US books, the latter definition is very elastic; the vast majority of the Bibs in my region would be high-end and pricey by many people’s standards, but were still too casual in atmosphere to notch stars, even if the food merited it. The non-US guides seem to be more inclined to naming down-and-dirty Bibs and even elevating street-food-type spots to star status. Most of the US Bibs are going to be minimum $30/head without drinks.
Inspections are done anywhere from 3 to 9 months in advance of a book’s publication, so it’s possible some WDW restaurants that were closed as of last summer/fall might have been included had they been open. I can guarantee you that V&A’s will get star consideration this year; they’re very inclined to inspect restaurants that “put themselves out there” for it. They have to earn it once they get them in the door, though!
Hope that answers some of your questions about Michelin. I haven’t worked for them in years but can definitely vouch for the care they put into their product.
Thanks Tom for the Poly update going there in a few weeks and glad the walkway to the Grand is open, hate the wall but at least is open, also love the new walkway from the grand to the MK and the MK to the Contemp.
I a big follower of Michelin and have eaten at a handful of one stars in France and US and a two star in Paris (Le Clarence-crazy inventive), but I am embarrassed to say I have never actually ever looked at their website or their physical guide. I usually ask the hotel concierge to make reservations, Google ones near my area, or I have seen the restaurant on a travel/food show. Thanks to this post, I hopped on their website and downloaded their app too! I also had no idea about the Bib Gourmand rating. I just found one of those restaurants near the Eiffel Tower and booked a lunch for this Thursday while we are in Paris. We in France for the month with a 2 and 5 year old, so any fancy dinners are out of the question, but lunch at a Bib Gourmand place seems like the perfect solution to satisfy my husband and I’s foodie needs, while still being able to take the kids. Thank you!!
I just want to add some insight as to why the Michelin guides are so helpful for restaurant recommendations:
1) They dine at the restaurants more than once to weed out inconsistency.
2) I know for the Michelin-starred restaurants, those get re-reviewed each year, and they are not afraid to take something off the list if it goes down in quality. I would assume the same applies to the Bib Gourmand recommendations.
Personally, from everything I have read/seen/experienced with Disney World post-reopening, I would be shocked if they end up being much of a presence in the Michelin guide. I think the food quality and service is way too variable, and improving guest satisfaction does not seem to be top priority at the moment.
Interesting advice. I am definitely someone who thought along the lines of ‘Michelin Guide is a list of highfalutin haute cuisine for pretentious people’, so this certainly prompts me to consider another look. Thanks!
There is actually a 74 year old street noodle shop in Bangkok, Jay Fai, that earned a 1 Michelin Star rating in 2018 and has held for four years now. She wears goggles while cooking because of the heat over the woks and the spices she uses. So you can find some cheap, but amazing places that have a star rating here and there. 🙂
We agree with your sentiment regarding cloud-sourced sites. However, not living in one of the Michelin-covered areas, we have had to depend on Yelp. You mention that there are numerous websites, at least for US-based locations, that you do trust. I couldn’t find anything here or in Travel Caffeine that mentions any. Can you list some of those sites? Thank you.
Choosing where to eat is a dedicated process for every trip I take, and I thus feel very similarly to you about doing restaurant research. It’s nice to have google/yelp/etc to give a general idea of what to *avoid*, but they really aren’t great for picking out a restaurant in tourist areas for the exact reasons you mention. My general tactic for places I haven’t been is to consult a number of different legit-looking articles and select down for whoever shows up on all of the lists. It’s amazing how varied those lists can be, but if something makes it on most or all of them it’s been worth checking out.
You mentioned having sites or blogs that you resourced when traveling to get the best meals. I’d love to see these recommendations!
Thank you for this list! As newer locals, we look forward to trying some of these and will especially enjoy ordering food we like from the menus. We really enjoyed V &A for a special occasion five years ago and were planning to go again but with the new prices, I’ll sleep in and not worry about fighting for a reservation!
Have you ever tried Delmonicos Italian Steak house. They have a Senatra chicken that is to die for, as well as the best crab cakes I have had since I moved to Florida very simular to that you would get in phili. Rest. Is designed after all old movie stars. Owner actually visits tables to see how things are. Best tableside service anywhere. Located off Westwood blvd orlando
Thanks for the recommendation–I’ll have to look that place up.
You will not regret. Another good one Mexican chewys
Well thank you for this! We’re always looking for new places to dine when in Orlando.
After reading your review of Flying Fish we snagged an ADR for our last trip in April and sorry to say we were not impressed. My husband had the Strip and I had the potato wrapped snapper. His medium rare steak was really tough, tougher than a normal strip and my snapper was dry and tasteless. Must have been an off night for the chef, the place was packed. We were seated next to the kitchen door so that was lovely. Our server was great though and recommended the perfect wine pairings. There are so many great dining choices inside DW and around DW we rarely eat at the same place twice so this list will help. Thanks again.
You’re welcome, but sorry to hear your meal wasn’t up to expectations.
Inconsistency could actually be the downfall of many Walt Disney World restaurants. So many are all over the place; it’s possible to have great meals at normally mediocre restaurants and disappointing meals at restaurants that are normally great.
It could be post-reopening struggles, too; Yachtsman Steakhouse took a step down in my book, too.
Has anyone seen a 2022 review of the Flying Fish? (Apologies in advance if Tom posted one and I missed it.)
I live near Tampa and one of the selected Bib Gourmand restaurants, Ichicoro, is mediocre at best, so I’m skeptical. (For ramen, Dosunco is much, much better in my opinion. Their tonkotsu ramen is amazing).
…now to convince Sarah that we need to head over to Tampa and try both ramen shops in the same day for the sake of a more accurate head to head comparison! 😉
Homecomin seems like it should be on the Bib list, at least.
It’s probably too expensive.
It’s funny how you say you feel like you owe the Michelin guide a debt of gratitude. That’s how I feel about all the good advice I’ve gleaned from here over the years. Some of our extended family just arrived today, and I shared a bunch of your articles when helping them plan.
Couldn’t agree more about the flaws with crowd sourced reviews.
Well, I appreciate you sharing articles with family and friends, so consider whatever imagined debt exists repaid. 🙂
Ditto… While I love the constant reengineering of the park tours (especially important in “interesting” times!), Tom’s dining reviews and recommendations are very useful in thinking about where to try next.
One reason to actually make a visit to Sacramento is for Localis, one of the few Michelin recognized restaurants in the area. It’s truly superb. I’ve only had a handful of fine dining meals and this was either the best or second best. (The other was The Waterboy, also in midtown Sacramento) We had our anniversary dinner from them a couple of years ago. Unfortunately we weren’t able to have the full dine-in experience since the pandemic had just started, but service was impeccable from the moment we called in to order to a wonderful reply to our review on their FB page.
If you are ever in this area for some reason, it is my top recommendation.
I’m not sure when we’ll ever have reason to visit Sacramento, but I’ll keep that in mind if we do. Thanks!
Prior to COVID, Vickie and Al’s was a 4 diamond several years running, one of only two in Florida. We’ve been going there for years, in fact since it opened.. We know Chef and the Maitre D well. Can’t wait for it to be open for our next trip. Hope the Chef’s Table will be available. Don’t forget Narcoosee’s. Been going there since the GF was the only building there except for that restaurant. Always request the same server we’ve had for decades. Great wine list! In Springs we love the steaks at STK, IF you can stand the music! Great wine list as well. Never gonna have any diamonds, either one, but great food. Lobster bisque is a signature dish at Narcoose’s. Try it!
It’ll be interesting to see which direction Narcoossee’s goes with the big refurbishment coming up. I could see it becoming another prix fixe spot, or Grand Floridian chasing two Michelin-starred restaurants (although I think Citricos has the better shot of that, between the two). Or, maybe they’ll go for a prix fixe menu instead.