In this episode, Clark Wolf credits passionate local farmers, strong culinary traditions, and regional talent for attracting high-caliber chefs, leading to our local Michelin-recognized restaurants. He mentions Sonoma County three-Michelin-star recipients Enclos in the town of Sonoma, and SingleThread in Healdsburg, as well as Californios in San Francisco (noting it as the first Mexican restaurant to earn three stars). Also mentioned are the French Laundry, and many one- and two-star spots, with Wolf citing James Beard’s advice to seek one-star restaurants for great value. Wolf explains Michelin’s origins with the tire company, its reliance on local subsidies, and the inexact, sometimes ethically fraught nature of restaurant reviewing amid changing media economics, paywalls, and democratized online food commentary.
