When people talk about Michelin, you probably picture high-performance tires that are not afraid of our canadian winter roads. Or perhaps you’ve imagined the famous Michelin man (whose real name is Bibendum), the company’s emblem for a long time. However, for the restaurant and hotel world, the name of the famous manufacturer rather evokes austere critics and the awarding of stars to exemplary dishes. In fact, it is the same company whose name appears on so many tires that publishes one of the most prestigious gastronomic guides in the world every year: the Michelin Guide.
The Guide, or “How to use your tires in a pleasant way”!
No, the name is not a coincidence! Although it is more associated with rubber, its influence on the field of fine cuisine remains dominant to this day. The release of the guide 2021 last January made a lot of waves, to the delight of foodies around the world. Every year, the events makes headlines, which is understandable when you consider what losing or gaining a star can mean for a restaurant! But how did a tube company become a reference in the world of food? The answer is simple: an advertising campaign that worked (very) well!
Indeed, the first Michelin Guide was nothing more than a publicity stunt, intended to boost the sales of the young company after the World’s Fair of 1900. At the time, there were less than 2500 drivers in the whole of France and road maps were rare. Although mainly aimed at cyclists, this first edition was one of the only vital information resources for motorists: garages, doctors and even tourist points of interest.
In barely ten years, the print run of what was supposed to be only a double advertising leaflet has doubled. After the First World War, the democratization of the automobile and the development of new roads led to a revival of gastronomy, all along the vacation highway. It was at this time that Michelin decided to integrate restaurants into the highway, using the star classification as early as 1926. It is the beginning of an era.
A reference still today
Over the course of the following century, the Guide continued to gain prestige and to expand, first to the rest of Europe and then to the world. In 2021, restaurateurs in Tokyo, New York, Bangkok and Paris will once again have to face harsh criticism from Michelin employees. As with their tires, the company is known for its very strict quality control, going so far as to take a star away for changing the cheese in a soufflé for cheddar cheese…
Probably one of the most successful advertising campaigns in history, there is no denying that this is a monumental victory for Michelin. Who would have thought that the success of a tire manufacturer could depend on food critics? And yet, the French company persists, inviting motorists every year to take to the road and discover the best restaurants on the planet. How far will you go to eat?
