Gwendal Poullennec, international director of the Michelin Guide, flew all the way from France to the Philippines for the inaugural Michelin Guide: Manila and Environs and Cebu 2026 awarding of Michelin stars and special awards for the first ever in the Philippines last 30 October in Marriott Grand Ballroom, Pasay City.

In his speech, Poullennec shared who are the “inspectors” that determined which restaurants and chefs would accept stars and awards.

“As you may know, our international inspectors consisting of men and women based locally and abroad are passionate professionals, full-time employees of the Michelin group who share their love for great cooking and spend their time looking out for the best restaurants,” he explained.

“In the field, our inspectors behave just like any other regular guest always think they are be,” he noted, adding that the inspectors never identify themselves to the restaurants and pay their bills as any regular guest.

““Coming back to our inspectors, you should already know that they assess restaurants following five universal criteria that have been applied for over a century,” he said.

“The same inspector never come back twice to the same place and all decisions, all decisions are team decisions to ensure that our recommendations have the same value everywhere in the world.”

According to him, for the inaugural Michelin Guide: Manila and Environs and Cebu 2026, their inspectors explored Metro Manila, Cavite and “from the skyline of Bonifacio Global City to the coastal beauty of Cebu and from the historic streets of Manila to the creative pulse of Marikina.”

A total of 108 establishments were awarded, ranging from a “carinderia” and “eateries,” to luxury and fine dining restaurants — owned by both locals and expats, and by homegrown cooks with "sariling sikap" (own training) and those who schooled and trained abroad.

One restaurant was awarded with the country’s first ever two Michelin stars, while eight got one Michelin star, 25 got the Bib Gourmand distinction, 74 are Michelin selected, one has been awarded with Green Star for mindful gastronomy, and three special awards were handed over for Young Chef, Service and Exceptional Cocktails.