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'Best chef in the world' Guy Savoy stripped of Michelin star

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Agence France Presse

<div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img alt="French chef Guy Savoy poses during a photo session in his restaurant in Paris on November 29, 2022. JOEL SAGET / AFP" src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2023/overseas/02/28/chef.jpg"/><figcaption>French chef Guy Savoy poses during a photo session in his restaurant in Paris on November 29, 2022.<em> JOEL SAGET / AFP</em></figcaption></figure></div><p>PARIS, France - The Michelin Guide announced Monday the shock decision to knock a star off the Paris restaurant of Guy Savoy, frequently named the best chef in the world. </p><p>The 69-year-old has held Michelin&#x27;s top three-star status since 2002 for his Monnaie de Paris restaurant overlooking the Seine, which has a sister version in Caesars Palace, Las Vegas. </p><p>In November he was named best chef in the world for the sixth year running by La Liste, which aggregates thousands of reviews from around the world. </p><p>Savoy&#x27;s fame goes beyond the kitchen as an ambassador for the French &quot;art de vivre&quot; -- he has pointedly rejected the fad for non-alcoholic drinks, for instance -- and he lent his voice to the French version of Pixar film &quot;Ratatouille&quot;. </p><p>But that has not stopped Michelin downgrading his establishment to two stars in its latest edition, published next Monday. </p><p>It did the same for the upmarket seafood eatery of Christopher Coutanceau in La Rochelle.</p><p>&quot;These are exceptional restaurants, so you can imagine that these decisions are carefully considered, supported by numerous visits from our inspectors throughout the year,&quot; Gwendal Poullennec, head of the guide, told AFP. </p><p>The reasons are not made public, and communicated only to the chefs involved.</p><p>&quot;For such important decisions, we include not just French inspectors but also some from other countries,&quot; said Poullennec.</p><p>The move to downgrade restaurants is always hugely controversial, especially since the suicide 20 years ago of Bernard Loiseau -- a close friend of Savoy -- after his restaurant lost a star.</p><p>One chef, Marc Veyrat, unsuccessfully took the guide to court in 2019 after being stripped of a star, and said he never again wanted to see a Michelin inspector in his restaurants.</p><p>Around 20 French restaurants have also been downgraded from two to one star in the latest edition of the guide. </p><p>It had not downgraded anyone since 2019, conscious of the difficulties caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. </p><p>Those difficulties have continued with restaurants facing staffing shortages and, in the last year, soaring prices. </p><p>But the guide says downgrades are now necessary if it is to stay relevant.</p><p>&quot;Yes, there are challenges, but they are challenges for everyone,&quot; said Poullennec. </p><p>Created in 1900 by tyre manufacturers Andre and Edouard Michelin as a guide for motorists, it now has editions across Europe, Asia, North and South America.</p><div><strong>neo-er/pvh</strong></div><div><strong>© Agence France-Presse</strong></div><figure class="op-interactive"><iframe height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/kkWDO6un_wA?enablejsapi=1" width="560"></iframe></figure><div class="iwantbar">Watch more News on <a href="https://www.iwanttfc.com/#!/browse/Genres/News/tag_id_genres/id_news" target="_blank">iWantTFC</a></div>

The Michelin Guide announced Monday the shock decision to knock a star off the Paris restaurant of Guy Savoy, frequently named the best chef in the world. 