Michelin adds 21 California restaurants

Michelin added 21 restaurants to its California selection on May 20, widening the field ahead of its next statewide guide ceremony. The additions included 11 in the Los Angeles area and seven in the San Francisco Bay Area, with the remaining picks in Southern California markets including La Jolla and Palm Springs, according to Michelin’s California update and regional coverage. The move does not itself confer stars. Michelin said new restaurants are added to the selection twice a year, while Stars and Bib Gourmands are announced at the annual ceremony, which the guide said is scheduled for June 24. ### Which Los Angeles restaurants were newly added? Los Angeles-area additions numbered 11, according to the Los Angeles Times, which said the new entries included Sonoratown, Kusano, Mori Nozomi and Tomat. (guide.michelin.com) The Times reported Michelin had added 21 restaurants statewide and that 11 of them were in the Los Angeles area. Michelin’s own California additions page also listed several Los Angeles entries in its May update, including ALTO, Casa Leo, Electric Bleu, Kojima, Lielle and Lynx. (guide.michelin.com) The guide’s site describes the additions as restaurants that “have won over” its inspectors and marks them with a “New” symbol on its website and app. ### What did Michelin say this update means? (latimes.com) Michelin said inspectors spend the year traveling to identify restaurants to recommend and that new additions are published before the annual awards ceremony. On its California update page, the company said the distinctions that remain to be announced at the ceremony are Stars and Bib Gourmands. (guide.michelin.com) That means inclusion in the selection places a restaurant in Michelin’s reviewed pool, but does not indicate whether it will receive a star in June. The Los Angeles Times similarly described the additions as a guide expansion ahead of the 2026 reveal. ### How broad was the update outside Los Angeles? Seven Bay Area restaurants were added in the same May 20 update, Eater San Francisco reported. (guide.michelin.com) Its report said the California guide’s latest list brought in 21 restaurants total and that seven of them were in the Bay Area. Michelin’s California page shows the update stretched beyond Los Angeles and the Bay Area. (guide.michelin.com) The guide listed Beverly Hills, La Jolla and Palm Springs among the places receiving newly added restaurants in the May release. ### Why are casual spots getting mentioned alongside tasting counters? Sonoratown’s inclusion stood out because it is a widely known taqueria rather than a tasting-menu restaurant, according to local coverage cited in the source briefings. (sf.eater.com) Michelin’s own California updates mix formats and price points on the same list, from live-fire restaurants and tapas spots to sushi counters and pizza specialists. (guide.michelin.com) The guide’s website says inspectors are adding restaurants they want to recommend before formal distinctions are assigned. That structure allows Michelin to surface a broader statewide set of restaurants in spring, then separate out Stars and Bib Gourmands at the June ceremony. ### What happens next, and where will the results appear? (latimes.com) June 24 is the next key date in California dining calendars because Michelin said that is when its annual ceremony will reveal Stars and Bib Gourmands. Michelin also said the newly added restaurants are already visible on its website and mobile app with a “New” marker. (guide.michelin.com) California’s full restaurant selection remains searchable on Michelin’s official state guide page, where the newly added entries appear alongside existing starred, Bib Gourmand and recommended restaurants. (guide.michelin.com 1) (guide.michelin.com 2)