Californios Is Now the World’s First Michelin 3-Star Mexican Restaurant

Michelin historical past was made final evening in San Diego. Californios, chef Val Cantu’s San Francisco tasting menu vacation spot, turned the primary Mexican restaurant on the planet to earn three Michelin stars.

The French gastronomic information revealed all of the eating places incomes stars throughout the Golden State in a ceremony that additionally noticed Sonoma’s Enclos by chef Brian Limoges rocket to 3 stars after solely being open for round 18 months.

For Californios, it was a for much longer journey to the highest. Cantú, a Texas native who’d labored in kitchens from Uchi in Austin, Texas, to Sons & Daughters in San Francisco, had seen the dearth of Mexican positive eating and got down to change that. He frolicked at Pujol in Mexico Metropolis and returned to San Francisco to host pop-ups beginning in 2013. In 2015, the brick-and-mortar Californios was born within the Metropolis by the Bay, incomes a Michelin star in its first 12 months. A couple of years later, it turned the primary Mexican restaurant in America to earn a second Michelin star. In 2020, Cantú moved his restaurant to a bigger house in San Francisco and reopened in 2021 to serve his 10-course menu. Final 12 months, it got here in at No. 51 on our rankings of the 100 Biggest American Eating places of the 21^st Century.

Enclos, constructed inside an outdated Victorian residence at Stone Edge Farm Vineyards and Vineyard, ascended to 2 stars in 2025, only a few months after opening. On the restaurant Limoges serves up to date Californian delicacies, impressed by components from Stone Edge Farm and seafood from the close by Pacific.

One of many different large winners of the evening was Kato, Jon Yao’s beautiful Taiwanese tasting menu in Downtown Los Angeles, which was promoted to 2 stars. And 9 different eating places earned their first Michelin star: Hall 109, Kojima, Lielle, Lucien, Miura, Naides, Seline, Troubadour, and Wolfsbane (Each Lielle and Wolfsbane made our 2026 record of the ten Finest New Eating places in America).

For some eating places it was a more durable evening, as a handful of institutions misplaced their star: 715, Camphor, Gucci Osteria da Massimo Bottura (closed final fall), Gwen, Kenzo, Knife Pleat, Le Comptoir at Bar Crenn (Bar Crenn will stay open, however Dominique Crenn introduced Le Comptoir would shut), Morihiro (moved to a brand new location), O’ by Claude Le Tohic, Shibumi (closed final summer season), Uka (briefly closed), and Valle all fell out of the rankings. Whereas these eating places misplaced their stars, no eating places within the three- or two-star ranks have been demoted in 2026.

Take a look at the complete record of starred eating places within the record beneath and click on right here for pictures of all of the eating places incomes new stars.

Each Michelin-Starred Restaurant in California for 2026

Three Stars

Two Stars

One Star