Michelin, the global dining guide famous for its star ratings and prestige, just named a slew of new restaurants that will appear in its 2026 California Guide. The full guide will be revealed at a ceremony in San Diego on June 24.
Of today’s 21 new additions, 11 are in the Los Angeles area and include “a highly tuned omakase” in Beverly Hills, a stalwart taqueria famed for its fresh flour tortillas, and a new Cali-French bistro with an affordable tasting menu. The guide also recognized an L.A. Times-recommended restaurant in Palm Springs, newcomers in La Jolla and Santa Barbara, and multiple restaurants in the Bay Area.
The restaurants appear in the guide due to being new and notable; a good value for the price, also known as a Bib Gourmand pick; or because they earned stars. Stars, awarded on a scale of one to three, are the most lauded of the guide’s accolades and some of the most sought-after in the restaurant industry. Green stars, which recognize environmentally friendly practices, are also awarded.
Michelin’s anonymous inspectors allot star ratings based on criteria including “ingredient quality, harmony of flavors, the mastery of culinary techniques, how the chef’s personality shines through their cuisine and, crucially, consistency across the entire menu and over time,” according to the Michelin website.
Beverly Hills’ Miura serves an 18-course, edomae-sushi omakase from executive chef Derek Wilcox, an alum of Japan’s Kikunoi and Ginza Sushi Aoki. Kojima offers an ever-changing omakase from chef-owner Hayato Kojima, who cooks behind an eight-seat counter within a Sawtelle strip mall.
Sonoratown co-owner Jennifer Feltham works at the downtown location of Sonoratown taqueria in 2019.
(Silvia Razgova / For The Times)
One of L.A.’s best taquerias also made the guide, with Sonoratown (with locations downtown, in Mid-City and Long Beach) receiving its first inclusion after a decade in operation. Co-owner Jennifer Feltham hopes that Sonoratown’s recognition — as well as other recent inclusions, such as the March addition of Lugya’h — means that the guide is representing more taquerias or Mexican regional cuisines.
“I want to see them get street taquerias on there because that’s a huge part of what it means to eat in Los Angeles,” she said. “Maybe we are a sign that they’re going to start paying attention to more humble vendors, and that’s awesome. … Maybe Michelin will put my favorites, Los Dorados and Tire Shop Taqueria, in there next.”
Studio City’s celebrated live-fire Argentinian and Uruguayan restaurant Alto is now in the statewide guide, serving grilled meats, kombu-roasted pork and empanadas from chefs Juana Castellanos Lagemann and Esteban Klenzi. Sawtelle’s buzzy modern Korean restaurant the Mulberry is also in the guide, with options such as bluefin tuna bibimbap and stone-pot steak tartare.
When it comes to fine dining, Nordic-tinged Pico-Robertson restaurant Lielle from Frantzén vet Marcus Jernmark is added and celebrated for dishes such as agnolotti del plin with Gruyère custard and black truffles. Michelin also recognized chef-owner Okay Inak’s arresting one-man show of a restaurant, downtown L.A.’s Sora Craft Kitchen, where he cooks and serves labor-intensive Turkish and Anatolian cuisine.
Rosemead’s popular Good Alley, a Kaifeng-style xiao long bao specialist and tea house, is also in the guide, as is Joshua Whigham’s Casa Leo in Los Feliz, where he offers Spanish tapas, labor-of-love flatbreads, family recipes and natural wines.
The newest restaurant in today’s list is the Arts District’s Lynx, a hyper-creative modern pizzeria and bar from Angler founder Joshua Skenes. And in Mar Vista one of the city’s favorite new bistros, Electric Bleu, comes from husband-and-wife team Craig Hopson and Mai Sakai. They offer California-influenced French cuisine in an a la carte format as well as in an affordable tasting menu.
Electric Bleu offers “L.A.’s new must-try tasting menu,” according to Food critic Jenn Harris.
(Yasara Gunawardena / For The Times)
“We never really wrote down goals but there’s a few achievements we wanted to check off, and being mentioned in the Michelin Guide was definitely one of them,” said Hopson, a Le Cirque alum. “I sort of grew up in those Michelin restaurants, so it’s really exciting to be a part of that club, and to get the recognition that we are a genuinely good restaurant.”
Palm Springs destination Alice B., from L.A.-based chefs Susan Feniger and Mary Sue Milliken, was also recognized by Michelin today.
Southbound, La Jolla’s Lucien is also in the guide. To the north, new inclusions are Santa Barbara’s Monte’s; Los Gatos’ Vicinity; Oakland’s Joodooboo and Popoca; and San Francisco’s Kitchen Istanbul, Maria Isabel, Minnie Bell’s Soul Movement and Via Aurelia.
Michelin’s California Guide can be found here.
