This year's Michelin star awards affirmed the Bay Area's dominance of the upper end of California's fine dining, with six new restaurants earning their first star or reclaiming it
Three of San Francisco's new star recipients — live-fire restaurant Osito, Corey Lee's first Korean concept San Ho Won, and former Californios chef David Yoshimura's first solo venture, Nisei — signed leases during the chaos and widespread closures of the pandemic, while Korean tasting menu spot Ssal had just a year under its belt before weathering the storm.
A contemporary Californian restaurant in San Diego, Addison entered new heights with the award of three Michelin stars, the only restaurant in this year's slate to earn the distinction for the first time — and the only one outside the Bay Area. Corey Lee's minimalist mastery at Benu, located at 22 Hawthorne St. in SoMa, retained three-star status for the eighth time. SingleThread , Quince , Manresa , The French Laundry , and Atelier Crenn rounded out this year's three-star list., 10 formerly starred Bay Area restaurants — six of them in San Francisco — fell off the guide this year, the former the most in the Bay Area since 2019 .