Bobby Flay's Only Restaurant To Receive A Michelin Star

It really does feel like Bobby Flay should have more bonafide cooking credentials to his name. Ever since Flay became famous at just 27 years old with his first appearance on Food Network's "Iron Chef America," he has endured as one of the hardest working chefs in showbiz. He's spent decades on TV and opened a broad slate of restaurants around the world. Flay was even the first chef to get a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Still, all of these achievements don't really tell us much about his cooking ability or menu-crafting skills. For that, we expect something like a Michelin star — and it turns out the TV chef did once receive the coveted award. However, he didn't keep it long.

In 2008, the Michelin Guide awarded Flay's Las Vegas restaurant, the Mesa Grill, a single star. As a follow up to the original Mesa Grill in New York, his very first restaurant which opened in 1991, the Las Vegas expansion had only just popped up (in Caesars Palace, no less) in 2004. But Flay's Michelin prestige shined for just a single year, as the Guide unceremoniously stripped the Mesa Grill of its star in 2009 and subsequently ceased publication of its Las Vegas guide shortly after. Though both Mesa Grill restaurants have since closed, the chef's new Italian spot Amalfi opened in 2021, one of the many celebrity chef establishments in Vegas.

The awarding of Michelin stars by the eponymous Michelin Guide is both a mysterious and fairly straightforward process. Unlike the recognizable critics at major outlets like the New York Times, Michelin inspectors are essentially secret restaurant spies who endeavor to blend in with any other diner. They slip in, sometimes in pairs or groups, evaluate the food, and slip out — hopefully undetected. According to Michelin itself, inspectors are encouraged to visit restaurants multiple times to get a feel for the menu and to judge whether the food quality is consistent from dish to dish.

As of 2024, there are only 234 restaurants with Michelin stars in the entire United States. It's a tough accolade to earn, and it's not permanent. As Flay found out the hard way, restaurants are reviewed year-to-year — so there's no room to slack. That being said, the Michelin Guide says it doesn't judge by a business' decoration or even service. Flay's restaurant was awarded the star on the same criteria as any other restaurant: the quality and consistency of the ingredients and meals, as well as the chef's vision.