List of Michelin 3-star restaurants in the United Kingdom

This article contains a list of Michelin 3-star restaurants in the United Kingdom.

The Waterside Inn, the first restaurant outside France to hold three Michelin stars for 25 years

Michelin stars are a rating system used by the red Michelin guide to grade restaurants on their quality. The guide was originally developed in 1900 to show French drivers where local amenities such as restaurants and mechanics were, the rating system was first introduced in 1926 as a single star, with the second and third stars introduced in 1933.^[1] According to the Guide, one star signifies "a very good restaurant", two stars are "excellent cooking that is worth a detour", and three stars mean "exceptional cuisine that is worth a special journey".^[2] The listing of starred restaurants is updated once a year.^[3]

The first restaurant in the UK to gain a Michelin star was Albert and Michel Roux's Le Gavroche, in London.^[4] It went on to become one of the first UK restaurants to win a second star in 1977, and the first to win a third, in 1982.^[2] In 2010 the Roux family's second restaurant, the Waterside Inn, became the first restaurant outside France to have held three Michelin stars for 25 years.^[5] The Roux family was also influential in training and influencing other chefs who themselves have gone on to win Michelin stars; Pierre Koffmann,^[6] Marco Pierre White and Gordon Ramsay all went on to open restaurants which earned three Michelin stars after working with the Roux brothers.^[7][8]

As of February 2024 there were nine restaurants in the UK holding three Michelin stars, with all except L’Enclume (Cumbria) located in London or the south of England.^[9]

List of Michelin 3-star restaurants

Restaurant	Chef	Cuisine	Location				Current	Ref.
				Year to star
Alain Ducasse at the Dorchester	Alain Ducasse	Contemporary French	London	—	2009	2010–present		[10]
Chez Nico	Nico Ladenis	French cuisine	Reading, Berkshire (1973–1981), London (1982–1999)	1981–1983	1984–1994	1995–1999	Closed	[11]
The Fat Duck	Heston Blumenthal	Molecular gastronomy	Bray, Berkshire	1999–2001	2002–2003	2004–2015, [Note 1] 2017–present		[12][13]
La Tante Claire	Pierre Koffmann	French cuisine	London	1979	1980–1992, 1999–2002	1993–1998	Closed	[14]
Restaurant Gordon Ramsay	Gordon Ramsay	French cuisine	London	—	1999–2000	2001–present		[15]
The Restaurant Marco Pierre White[Note 2]	Marco Pierre White	French cuisine	London	2001–2002	1994	1995–1999	Closed	[11]
The Waterside Inn	Alain Roux	French cuisine	Bray, Berkshire	1974–1976	1977–1984	1985–present		[16]
The Araki	Mitsuhiro Araki	Japanese cuisine	London	—	2016–2017	2018–2020	—	[17]
Sketch (The Lecture Room & Library)	Pierre Gagnaire	French cuisine	London	2005–2011	2012–2018	2019–present		[18]
Hélène Darroze at The Connaught	Hélène Darroze	French cuisine	London	2009–2011	2011–2021	2021–present		[19]
Core by Clare Smyth	Clare Smyth	British cuisine	London	—	2018–2021	2021–present		[20]
L'Enclume	Simon Rogan	British cuisine	Cartmel, Cumbria	2005–2013	2013–2022	2022–present		[21]
The Ledbury	Brett Graham	British cuisine	Notting Hill, London	2009-2010	2010-2021, 2023-2024	2024–present		[22]

See also

• United Kingdom portal
• Food portal
• Business and economics portal

• List of Michelin 3-star restaurants
• List of Michelin-starred restaurants in Ireland
• List of Michelin-starred restaurants in the Netherlands
• List of restaurants in London
• List of Michelin-starred restaurants in Greater London
• Lists of restaurants
• List of Michelin-starred restaurants in Scotland
• List of Michelin-starred restaurants in Wales

Notes

1. The Fat Duck does not appear in the 2016 Michelin Guide for the UK and Ireland as following a refurbishment and temporary relocation to Australia, it was not open in time to be considered.^[12]
2. The Restaurant Marco Pierre White was known simply as "The Restaurant" in 1994 when it was awarded two Michelin stars. After it moved to Mayfair in 1998, it became known as "Oak Room Marco Pierre White".

Citations

1. Boxell, James (15 July 2011). "Star-crossed". The Financial Times. Retrieved 3 March 2012.
2. Dixon, Rachel (24 January 2008). "Q&A: Michelin stars". The Guardian. Retrieved 3 March 2012.
3. "Top Michelin-rated restaurants". Caterer and Hotelkeeper. 6 October 2011. Retrieved 3 March 2012.
4. "Observer classic". The Guardian. 12 May 2002. Retrieved 3 March 2012.
5. Kapur, Sonia (20 May 2010). "Waterside Inn celebrates 25yrs of three-star quality". Maidenhead Advertiser. Archived from the original on 14 March 2012. Retrieved 3 March 2012.
6. Cooke, Rachel (20 June 2010). "Pierre Koffmann: 'Not enough British chefs cook from the heart'". The Observer. Retrieved 16 September 2012.
7. Barber, Lynn (21 October 2007). "What's eating Marco?". The Observer. Retrieved 16 September 2012.
8. Vines, Richard (16 November 2010). "Chef Albert Roux Has Advice for Protege Ramsay: Get Cooking". Bloomberg. Retrieved 16 September 2012.
9. "'Michelin Guide UK Latest'". The Staff Canteen. 27 March 2023. Retrieved 27 March 2023.
10. Kuhn, Kerstin (18 January 2010). "New Michelin-starred restaurants praised by guide editor". Caterer and Hotelkeeper. Archived from the original on 14 February 2012. Retrieved 27 May 2012.
11. Ryder, Bethan (27 September 2001). "When Marco met Nico". Evening Standard. Retrieved 16 September 2012.
12. Hyslop, Leah (16 September 2015). "Michelin Guide 2016: Japanese restaurants in London win coveted stars". Retrieved 27 October 2015.
13. "Heston Blumenthal: Why snail porridge consumes me". CNN. 14 September 2012. Retrieved 16 September 2012.
14. Maschler, Fay (15 December 1998). "Koffmann's classic La Tante Claire". Evening Standard. Retrieved 16 September 2012.
15. "Gordon Ramsay". Harden's. Retrieved 16 September 2012.
16. Norman, Matthew (18 June 2010). "Berkshire restaurant guide: The Waterside Inn in Bray, Berkshire". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 16 September 2012.
17. Hill, Lauren (2 October 2017). "Michelin Guide 2018: UK Winners Revealed". Retrieved 10 October 2017.
18. "Michelin restaurant guide: Sketch (The Lecture Room & Library)". 7 October 2019. Retrieved 7 October 2019.
19. "Michelin restaurant guide: Hélène Darroze at The Connaught". 29 January 2021. Retrieved 29 January 2021.
20. "Michelin restaurant guide: Core by Clare Smyth". 29 January 2021. Retrieved 29 January 2021.
21. "Michelin restaurant guide: L'Enclume". 16 February 2022. Retrieved 16 February 2022.
22. "Michelin restaurant guide: The Ledbury". 7 May 2024. Retrieved 7 May 2024.

External links

• Michelin 3-star restaurants in the UK
• Michelin 1, 2 and 3-star restaurants in London