Michelin Guide Mania

Michelin giveth and Michelin taketh away. The 1999 edition of the tire company’s famed red bible of French restaurants upgraded one longtime favorite chef to three-star status Monday and downgraded another.

Chef Marc Meneau of the Burgundy restaurant L’Esperance fell from glory as the Michelin demoted him from three to two stars.

“That’s it, I am no longer one of France’s top 20 chefs,” Meneau told French radio. “What bothers us a little is that we didn’t see it coming.”

At the same time, the guide gave a third star to Michel Bras, chef at the Paquebot de Granit hotel in the town of Laguiole in the southwestern Aveyron region.

Bras, 52, was rewarded for his local specialties, including roast whole pigeon spiced with orange, juniper berry and pepper, and saute of spring vegetables. His restaurant, which is closed for five months of the year, reopens April 10.

“If I am here, it’s thanks to my home region, and I want to give it credit in this victory,” Bras said.

Only 21 restaurants throughout France and Monaco merit three stars in Michelin’s powerful opinion. The three-star grade signifies “exceptional cuisine worth a journey.”

The 1999 guide lists 74 restaurants with two stars and 405 with one. Nine restaurants were elevated to two stars in 1999, including four in Paris: the Violon d’Ingres, Astor, Relais d’Auteil and the Pre Catelan. In another surprise, Fung Ching Chen’s Paris restaurant Chen-Soleil d’Est became the first Chinese restaurant in history to win a Michelin star.

Removing a star has sent chefs into bankruptcy, depression and early retirement. Meneau was obviously disappointment with his demotion.

“You ask yourself, ‘why me and not another?’ There is no answer, so I will try to rebuild my life,” he said.