It was a star-filled evening at the California Michelin Guide Ceremony on Wednesday in San Diego. A San Francisco and Sonoma restaurant were both promoted to a three-Michelin star distinction; a Los Angeles restaurant was promoted a two-Michelin star distinction; and nine restaurants earned a Michelin star for the first time.
In total, more than 500 eateries across the state were awarded, taking their places on the illustrious Michelin Guide for at least the next year.
Here are the new California Michelin star awards
Three Michelin Stars
Californios, San Francisco: Created in 2015 by chef-owner Val Cantú, this 24-seat restaurant serves contemporary, upscale Mexican tasting menus for $390 per person. Michelin Guide standout dishes:
- Sourdough tortilla with mezcal-battered black cod and huitlacoche and yellow corn cremas
- Heirloom white corn tortillas with black sesame and poppy seeds, smoked quail and house mole
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Enclos, Sonoma: The contemporary Californian tasting menu restaurant ($280 per person) opened late 2024 and is led by executive chef Brian Limoges. Michelin Guide standout dishes:
- Clam chawanmushi
- Hearth-roasted quail with artichokes, preserved rose petals and burnt citrus
Two Michelin Stars
Kato, Los Angeles: Created by chef Jon Yao, the contemporary, fine-dining Taiwanese American restaurant offers a 12-course seafood-focused tasting menu priced at $325 per person. Michelin Guide standout dishes:
- Mt. Lassen trout with fermented Napa cabbage tingling spice fish broth
- Peking-style duck breast with confit-stuffed sesame ball and magao pepper jus
One Michelin Star
Corridor 109, Los Angeles: This tasting menu restaurant seats just 11 guests and can be accessed through its sister bar, Bar 109. It offers an $325 11-course, seafood-focused tasting menu created by chef Brian Baik. Michelin Guide standout dishes:
- Santa Barbara spiny lobster tartare in a kombu tartlet with whitefish mousse
- Miso-marinated sawara cooked over charcoal
- Australian wagyu with oxtail jus and shiso
Kojima, Los Angeles: Named after and led by chef Hayato Kojima, this omakase restaurant offers a daily changing menu priced at $200 per person. Michelin Guide standout dishes:
- Fried longtooth grouper
- Poached Japanese clam with kudzu starch somen
- Crispy grilled unagi
- Rice with shirasu and dried shiso served with miso soup and daikon pickles
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Lielle, Los Angeles: This Californian cuisine restaurant opened just this year, offering a four-course seasonal tasting menu priced at $150 per person. Chef-owner Marcus Jernmark previously was a chef at a three-Michelin-starred restaurant in Sweden. Michelin Guide standout dishes:
- Agnolotti del plin with Gruyere cheese custard, black truffles and beurre noisette
- Aged shima aji crudo with grilled sweet peas and cucumber brunoise
- Pine-grilled California squab with miso vinaigrette-dressed salad
Lucien, La Jolla: Led by chef Elijah Arizmendi, Lucien is a 30-seat fine dining restaurant offering a 12-to-16-course seasonal tasting menu for $360 per person. The cuisine is centered around a wood-fired heart and has French and Japanese influences. Michelin Guide standout dishes:
- Tempura-fried sweet potato topped with caviar
- Yellowtail in a crispy nori tube
- Rose meringue with beets and green yogurt
- Crisp-skinned ocean tilefish with petite fennel and pomegranate
- Poussin with chicken mousse and truffle stuffing
- Cinnamon caramel-braised pineapple
Miura, Beverly Hills: This Edomae-style sushi restaurant is led by executive chef Derek Wilcox, who trained in Japan for a decade. The 18-course omakase is priced at $320 per person. Michelin Guide standout dishes:
- Charcoal-grilled snow crab
- Rice straw-smoked wild bluefin tuna
- Kagoshima cuttlefish nigiri
- Miyagi needlefish nigiri
Naides, San Francisco: Created by Patrick Gabon (an alum of Sons & Daughters) and Celine Wuu (an alum of Benu), Naides is a Filipino tasting menu restaurant that opened in December priced at $205-$235 per person. Michelin Guide standout dishes:
- Brioche pandesal with braised chicken gizzards
- Dry-aged duck breast adobo with soy jus and horseradish
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Seline, Santa Monica: It’s been a year of achievement for chef Dave Beran, who recently won the James Beard Foundation’s award for Best Chef: California. Seline offers a 15 to 18-course Californian cuisine tasting menu priced at $295 per person. Michelin Guide standout dishes:
- Edible succulents in “soil” of caraway rye crumbs, dusted with cauliflower snow
- Black cod infused with wild bay laurel with mussel cream and fennel
- Lamb loin with burnt strawberry jus and wild greens
- Housemade brioche brushed with pork fat
- Osetra caviar on toasted hazelnuts and coffee anglaise
Troubadour, Healdsburg: By day, Troubadour is an artisanal bakery and coffee bar. By night, it becomes a French tasting menu restaurant offering an eight-course prix-fixe menu ($195) and an 11-course chef’s table option ($295). Michelin Guide standout dishes:
- Bouillabaisse of rockfish with saffron-yuzu emulsion and clam croquette
- Seared duck breast with malted potato cream and a morel stuffed with chicken mousseline
Wolfsbane, San Francisco: With a menu created by chef Rupert Blease, Wolfsbane offers a $248 contemporary Californian tasting menu with Nordic, Japanese and French influences. Michelin Guide standout dish:
- Dungeness crab with sweet potato and sauce Maltaise with blood orange and beet
