Michelin Hits Philippines

Michelin’s first Philippines guide is now being promoted through a new 2026 Manila-and-Cebu pocket guidebook released by the Philippine embassy in Singapore on April 22. (philippine-embassy.org.sg) The embassy said the booklet highlights restaurants in “Manila & Environs and Cebu” and linked the launch to Filipino Food Month, the annual April campaign for Philippine cuisine. (philippine-embassy.org.sg, jakartape.dfa.gov.ph) Michelin had already unveiled its first-ever Philippines restaurant selection on October 30, 2025, at the Manila Marriott Hotel in Newport World Resorts. That debut guide covered Manila, nearby dining destinations, and Cebu. (michelin.com) The 2026 selection listed 108 establishments in total: 1 restaurant with two Michelin stars, 8 with one star, 25 Bib Gourmand picks, and 74 Michelin Selected restaurants. Michelin also gave 1 Green Star and 3 special awards. (michelin.com) Michelin’s inspectors defined “Manila & Environs” broadly, covering Makati, Manila, Mandaluyong, Parañaque, Pasay, Quezon City, Taguig, San Juan, plus Pampanga, Tagaytay, and Cavite, alongside Cebu. (spot.ph) That geography matters because Michelin does not publish a guide for every country at once; it expands city by city and region by region. In Southeast Asia, Michelin already runs guides in Singapore and Thailand, and its Singapore guide alone listed 283 locations in the 2024 edition. (michelin.com, michelin.com) For the Philippines, the guide gives international diners a standard Michelin format — stars for top restaurants, Bib Gourmand for strong value, and Selected for places inspectors recommend. Michelin said its Philippines inspectors worked anonymously and evaluated restaurants continuously. (michelin.com, spot.ph) The embassy framed this week’s pocket-guide launch as part of a wider state-backed push to present food as culture and tourism policy. Filipino Food Month is held every April under Presidential Proclamation No. 469 and is led by the National Commission for Culture and the Arts with the tourism and agriculture departments. (philippine-embassy.org.sg, jakartape.dfa.gov.ph) The result is that Michelin’s October 2025 debut in the Philippines is now being repackaged in April 2026 for diplomats, travelers, and diners abroad. The guide itself is no longer new, but the government’s latest push shows how Manila is trying to turn Michelin recognition into a longer tourism and branding campaign. (michelin.com, philippine-embassy.org.sg)