On February 9th, Michelin will announce the latest additions to the Britain and Ireland Michelin Guide live from the Convention Centre Dublin. These ratings and decisions mark the culmination of many thousands of meals eaten by the Michelin inspectors, a near-mythical group of anonymous individuals who collectively decide on stars and Bib Gourmands, thus influencing dining choices around the world.
But what is known about the inspectors? Michelin is tight-lipped, not even confirming how many are at work at one time. There is a belief, however, that 150-200 people are involved.
Last year Gwendal Poullennec, international director of the Michelin Guides, said in an interview that more than 25 nationalities were represented, with individual inspectors eating out up to 300 times per year.
The first rule of Michelin inspectordom is not talking about Michelin inspectordom. Inspectors are anonymous, booking their meals under false names and never revealing their identities. The only definite evidence that a restaurant has of an inspector having visited comes when Michelin posts comments and pictures on social media.
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Declan Maxwell is manager at Bib Gourmand restaurant Spitalfields in Dublin 8, and winner of the 2023 Michelin Welcome and Service award. “In the past, inspectors could choose to reveal themselves to the restaurant after the meal was over, sometimes even returning the next morning to speak with the chef out of service hours. They would share feedback and comments, but refrained from giving any hint of rating. Now they stay completely anonymous,” he says.
This is echoed by Danny Desmond, a food and beverage consultant with more than 30 years’ experience in the industry, including stints at Michelin-starred restaurants in London and in Chapter One in Dublin. “Michelin like to keep things spicy. Previously they posted on social media about two to three weeks after visiting, which meant we could go back through bookings to try and identify potential inspectors. But now they vary the time between the meal and posting, so we can’t even do that any more.”
Experience and connections have left both Danny and Declan with instincts for identifying inspectors, although they say you can never be sure.
“Irish restaurants are inspected mainly by UK inspectors, so any solo booking with UK contact details is an immediate candidate. Another previous tell-tale sign was inspectors not drinking alcohol but instead asking for water or freshly squeezed orange juice. I once wrongly tagged a regular British customer as an inspector because he ordered freshly squeezed orange juice. He never let me live it down,” says Maxwell.
“Ultimately, inspectors want to be treated like any other customer. They love hospitality. If I ever suspected we had an inspector in the house, I simply made sure that the entire room was being looked after, rather than focusing on an individual,” says Desmond.
Inspectors are believed to often dine alone, mostly for practical reasons. The Michelin Guide is wide in scope, ranging from casual to the Bib Gourmand and starred restaurants. As multiple visits are required for a fair and reliable evaluation, it’s clear that inspectors have a lot of visits to make, so solo dining would make sense, at least sometimes.
“When a restaurant is moving in the stars, either gaining or losing, there will be multiple visits to ensure that the collective inspector group is aligned, especially using more senior inspectors from countries like Belgium, Germany and France,” says Desmond. “Rumour in the industry has it that there were more than 15 separate visits when one London restaurant was recently elevated to three stars, with inspectors often dining in pairs.”
Being able to knowledgeably rate and review meals without bias is not something everybody can claim among their skills. Michelin says its inspectors are experts in the food, dining and hotel sectors with many years of prior experience under their belts. Most importantly they are passionate about food. Once selected, inspectors undergo a training programme, often shadowing more experienced inspectors to familiarise themselves with the famous five Michelin criteria: quality of products used, mastery of flavour and cooking techniques, personality of the chef as represented in the dining experience, harmony of the flavours, and consistency between visits.
As the Michelin guides are published by region, it seems safe to assume that inspectors work mostly within their regions. But in a world where multiple cuisines can be found in one city, how does Michelin ensure that vastly different cuisines are assessed equitably? It’s widely speculated that specialist inspectors may be brought into regions in order to assess the evaluations of the local team, while other inspectors may be sent abroad to extend their knowledge of other cuisines.
It’s certainly clear that Michelin is moving with the times. The adoption of social media and regular monthly updates to the guide matches the modern need for information.
“Michelin are often critiqued for the lack of diversity especially when it comes to female chefs,” says Maxwell. “I do suspect though that the inspector team has become more diverse in recent years, while still maintaining the need for experience and knowledge.”
Maxwell is a Michelin fan, and says the Bib Gourmand awarded to Spitalfields is a huge factor for international visitors to Dublin. “I ask everyone who visits how they found us, and more than 90 per cent will say ‘through Michelin’. Years ago the Bib Gourmand was used to acknowledge restaurants that offered good food at a good price. Nowadays, I think Michelin are conscious of the costs and overheads involved in running a quality restaurant, and the meaning of Bib Gourmand has evolved to be more about value.”
In the past, there was a widespread feeling that Michelin was not very present in Ireland, but there is no doubt now that the inspectors are here regularly. Since April 2025, 14 restaurants from across Ireland have been added to the Michelin Guide. Whether the country gets a three-star restaurant for the first time or not will be revealed on February 9th.
