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" Michelin, the French tire manufacturer and legendary restaurant guide pubisher, just released all-new editions for London and Paris. The books are more comprehensive -- every single hotel and restaurant in the book gets a write-up, regardless of rating -- and better executed -- restaurants that win a star or better receive the full-page treatment, complete with photographs. All the usual icons have returned as well -- the umbrella and table icon for outside dining, a bunch of grapes for a &amp;quot;particularly interesting wine list,&amp;quot; a figure at a lectern for a conference room, and the head of the cartoon character named Bibendum licking his lips to indicate a &amp;quot;Bib Gourmand&amp;quot; restaurant with &amp;quot;good cooking at moderate prices.&amp;quot; This last icon is the most valuable virtue of the new Michelin guides -- it makes clear that you don&amp;#039;t have to spend a fortune to eat well. Sadly, these solid, yet inexpensive places to eat stand in shocking relief to the price of dining at the star level nowadays. Consider this: a three-course meal at Amaya, the least expensive one-star restaurant in London, will run you a minimum of 30 pounds or $58 American. Paris is nearly twice as expensive, with a meal at the one-star G\u00E9rard Besson costing 100 euros, or $131. And that&amp;#039;s before you add in service charges or wine at some of these places. More than a century ago, the Michelin guides were created as a freebie toss-in when people bought tires -- a handy, glove-compartment accessory that helped drivers find decent places to eat and lodge while touring France. Today&amp;#039;s guide lacks that proletarian utility. Just looking at the festooned dining rooms in a starred establishment drives home how far the guides have come -- and it makes you wonder if food and food alone determines star ratings, as Michelin has always contended.  Indeed, in awarding one star to the modest-looking Assaggi in London, the guide reads, &amp;quot;Those in any doubt about the fact that Michelin stars are awarded for the quality of the food on the plate and not for the style or decoration of a place should come to Assaggi.&amp;quot; But Assaggi is such a rare exception among the stars that the guide&amp;#039;s contention falls rather flat -- it&amp;#039;s the exception that proves the rule. In Paris, the starred restaurants tend to have 50 seats, extravagant decor that extends to the restrooms, a kitchen brigade of 25 and a service staff of equal number. Some are more stark than others, but the Starck in question is invariably Philippe.  Over the last few years, Michelin has tried to crack the American market with New York and San Francisco editions, amongst other places. But the stars are not as highly regarded in the U.S. as they are in Europe. &amp;quot;The problem is that the rankings in the U.S. tend to be four or five stars,&amp;quot; says Jean-Luc Naret, who directs the guides, &amp;quot;so people see us give a restaurant one star and they don&amp;#039;t think that is very high. A Michelin star means yours is one of the 1,000 best restaurants in the entire world, while three stars means you are one of the 60 best.&amp;quot;  That&amp;#039;s great but if you read through any of the restaurant write-ups, you would think none has a single flaw, no notice of weak desserts, uncomfortable seating, loud music, or poor service. &amp;quot;It&amp;#039;s true,&amp;quot; said Naret. &amp;quot;We were very mellow in the beginning. We felt, let&amp;#039;s be positive, let&amp;#039;s not be negative. But we have heard this comment. The next ones will be very different.&amp;quot;  This year, the Paris edition saw a number of big-name restaurants lose a star, namely -- quel horreur! -- the revered Taillevent, which received its first Michelin star in 1948, its second in 1954, and, until this year, had retained its third star since 1973. One wishes there was any indication in the guide as to why this mighty temples of gastronomy took a nose dive, mais non.  Maybe they&amp;#039;ll tell us next year. "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.esquire.com/news-politics/a2864/michelin050907/>