Are three-star restaurants increasingly unaffordable? Although the Michelin guide has just awarded its famous distinctions, like every beginning of March, the stars of the highest gastronomy are also affected by inflation.
In just a few years, menu prices have skyrocketed. Thus, while in 2016 it was still allowed to pay less than 80 euros for a menu in some 3 French stars, the entrance ticket has since been much higher.
We have analyzed the menus of the 29 largest gourmet restaurants in France and in 2023 only one offers a menu for less than 100 euros. This is Kei in Paris, by Japanese chef Kei Kobayashi who obtained the supreme distinction in 2020.
To pay that price, forget about the candlelight dinner on Saturday night. This price only applies to the lunch menu served on Thursdays and Fridays. And it does not include any drinks. This is a small “discovery” menu. To taste the great dishes of the only three-star Japanese chef in France who has worked with the great chefs Gilles Goujon, Alain Ducasse and Jean-François Piège, you will have to pay much more. The “Prestige”, “Horizon” or “Black Truffle” tasting menus cost between 298 and 520 euros (per person)! The price to pay to taste the famous Kobe Wagyu beef or its Kristal Kaviari caviar dishes.
Another 3-star hotel offers a lunch menu for about 100 euros. This is the Maison Lameloise in Chagny in Burgundy, run since 2009 by chef Eric Pras. In this Côte d’Or restaurant located south of Beaune, the menu of the day is offered at 105 euros without drinks. A generous offer since at this price you can taste the fera of Lake Geneva, scallops and grilled Bresse chicken. Expensive products served at a relatively affordable price for this type of home.
The 3 Star Outbreak
Apart from these two addresses, the prices are much higher. There are no more 3 stars for less than 140 euros per menu. For lunch, it will cost at least €145 at L’Assiette champenoise in Reims, €150 at Troisgros en Ouches, or €158 at Clos des Sens in Annecy.
For dinner, on the other hand, there are few restaurants that charge less than 200 euros for the menu, while a few years ago many establishments offered tickets for 130-140 euros. Like La Bouitte located in Saint-Martin-de-Belleville in Savoie, a gourmet restaurant located at an altitude of 1500 meters and accessible with skis. In 2016, this restaurant run by René and Maxime Meilleur offered a formula at the rather low price of 130 euros. Now it’s 269 euros for the Discovery menu in 4 surprises. The restaurant had earned its three stars just a year earlier.
But the final payoff drives up prices, sometimes dramatically. The Marseille chef Alexandre Mazzia thus offered prices between 57 and 170 euros before obtaining his third star in 2021. Now, the 46-year-old chef, named “chef of the year 2019” by the Gault & Millau guide, offers prices between 195 and 425 euro. Any of the most expensive menus in France for a 3-star. The most expensive is that of chef Christian Le Squer at the Le Cinq restaurant in George V’s palace with a record price of 580 euros (without drinks).
This inflation that accompanies the stars is not new. According to the calculations of Kedge Business School experts, the reward attracts more customers, investors and partners and prices increase by an average of 25% for each star earned. The menus are getting richer and the products used more expensive.
What awaits the clients of the new chef Alexandre Couillon, triple award-winning? His restaurant La Marine de Noirmoutier is to date one of the cheapest 3-star restaurants in France with a dinner menu at 160 euros for six courses (and 220 euros with wine pairing).
Conscious of being increasingly unaffordable, especially for young gourmets, some chefs have been offering menus at lower prices for several years. Thus, the Marseillaise chef Gérald Passedat has a “First Wave” menu on his menu at 165 euros for those under 30 years of age. The venerable Troisgros en Ouches house even offers a “First Steps” menu at 150 euros, drinks included for those under 35 years of age.
Source: BFM TV
