New York City’s Three-Michelin-Starred Restaurants of 2018

The Michelin Guide—which rates restaurants in select countries spanning three continents—grew from humble beginnings in 1889 to become one of the leading measures of success in the restaurant industry. The original intent of the red-booked guide was to give travelers and motorists a reprieve from their long journeys, providing them with thoughtful recommendations for dining and lodging. The dining guide now holds an authoritative voice in the culinary realm, although their U.S. coverage includes just four cities: San Francisco, New York, Chicago, and Washington, D.C.

Among the handful of distinct qualifications that a restaurant must showcase for consideration, the experts at Michelin pay acute attention to the quality of ingredients, mastery of flavor, and the ability of the cuisine to reflect a chef’s personality. Then the decision of whether or not to give them a star at all is considered, and those deemed worthy of recognition are awarded either one, two, or three stars. Reaching this rare culinary success doesn’t mean that the restaurants can rest on their laurels though. After all, Jean-Georges Vongerichten’s flagship fine dining restaurant located within the Trump Tower in NYC was downgraded from three to two last year.

The Michelin Guide currently list 14 restaurants in the United States with a three-star rating, and five of them are standing strong in the Big Apple. From Manhattan to Madison Square Park, read on for the list of five restaurants that are serving up edible journeys worthy of the highest rating from the discerning Michelin Inspectors.