Five Tampa restaurants earn Michelin stars in 2024 guide

Tampa is officially a few stars richer—Michelin stars, that is.

The prestigious international dining guide held its annual award ceremony at the Tampa Edition tonight amongst a crowd of excited chefs, cocktail-clenching restaurateurs and furiously-typing journalists.

Intimate Scandinavian eatery Ebbe and omakase hotspot Kōsen are the newest Tampa restaurants to earn a prized star from Michelin’s anonymous inspectors.

Koya, Rocca and Lilac— which received their stars last year in Miami —all retained their stars.

The only new local eatery to snag a Bib in 2024 is South Tampa’s Streetlight Taco , which made its debut just a few months ago.
[content-1] The Bib Gourmand designation is awarded to restaurants that “leave you with a sense of satisfaction at having eaten so well at such a reasonable price.”

The 2024 Florida Michelin Guide (stylized "MICHELIN") also recommends over a dozen restaurants in Tampa, including everything from culinary institutions like Bern’s Steak House and Columbia to modern concepts like Restaurant BT, On Swann, Olivia and Ponte.

In all, 21 Tampa restaurants are recommended by the Michelin guide. Four have Bib Gourmands, and five have stars (see them below).

Michael Ellis, International Director of the Michelin Guide books, says that a recommended restaurant—while not at the level of a star or Bib—“is the sign of a chef using quality ingredients that are well cooked; simply a good meal.”

Special awards for Exceptional Cocktail Program, Best Sommelier, Young Chef Award and Michelin’s Service Award were also announced at Thursday night’s ceremony, although Tampa was not recognized in these categories.

Orlando’s casual fine dining Filipino restaurant Kaya and Miami’s Los Félix and Krüs Kitchen were awarded Florida’s first-ever Michelin Green Stars for their contributions to sustainability and culinary excellence.
[content-2] While only Tampa restaurants can be contenders for Michelin stars—since the guide has a partnership with Visit Tampa Bay and not Visit St. Pete Clearwater—the dining guide has plans to expand its footprint throughout the Sunshine State (hopefully, Pinellas County will be considered for its next round of growth.)

Visit Tampa Bay’s Patrick Harrison told Creative Loafing Tampa Bay last week that “as time moves forward we’ll see the guide starting to branch out,” adding that hotspots like the Palm Beaches, Fort Lauderdale and the greater St. Petersburg area all have vibrant dining scenes.

Florida Michelin Guide 2024 (*new for 2024)

Stars
Ebbe*
Kōsen*
Koya
Lilac
Rocca

Bib Gourmand
Gorkhali Kitchen
Psomi
Rooster & the Till
Streetlight Taco*

Recommended
Bern’s Steak House
Bistro BT
Cena
Columbia
Élevage SoHo Kitchen & Bar
Flaming Mountain
Haven
Mise en Place
Noble Rice
Oak & Ola
Olivia
On Swann
The Pearl
Predalina
Ponte
Restaurant BT
Steelbach
Supernatural Food & Wine
Timpano
Ulele
Yummy House

This is a developing post.

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