Get ready to make some reservations, because the 2022 Michelin Guide star rankings for Chicago are officially here. A total of 23 restaurants landed on this year's list—down from last year's roster of 24 spots—with four newcomers earning a place in the one-star category.
The new additions to this year's list include cuisines not typically spotlighted by the Chicago edition of the guide, including Tim Flores and Genie Kwon's beloved Filipino venture Kasama (which debuted its tasting menu late last year after opening for breakfast and lunch service in 2020) and Zach Engel's airy Middle Eastern restaurant Galit. Jenner Tomaska and Katrina Bravo's art-inspired concept Esmé and Trevor Teich's imaginative fine dining restaurant Claudia also received a single star. There were no new additions to the two- or three-star categories this year.
Most of the omissions from this year's list of stars come from recent restaurant closures, like the formerly two-starred Acadia as well as one-starred Entente, Spiaggia and Yūgen. Beverly Kim and Johnny Clark's Korean-American restaurant Parachute—which was recently named as Chicago's only finalist in the James Beard Awards' Outstanding Restaurant category—was not recognized with a star this year, as it remains temporarily closed and plans to reopen this spring.
As a quick refresher, here's what the prestigious star ratings mean, according to the Michelin Guide: One star is "high quality cooking, worth a stop;" two stars indicate "excellent cuisine, worth a detour;" and the coveted three-star ranking marks "exceptional cuisine, worth a special journey." Take a look at the complete list of Chicago restaurants that earned 2021 Michelin Guide stars below (and if you prefer something on the less expensive side, check out the full list of 2022 Bib Gourmand picks, which were released in conjunction with the star announcements).