America’s Restaurants Meet the Michelin Man

HISTORY This Week

The HISTORY® Channel

History, Education, Society & Culture

4.6 • 3.9K Ratings

🗓️ 17 February 2025

⏱️ 29 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

February 23, 2005. New York City's culinary elite gather at Gotham Hall. Tuxedoed waiters pass around champagne flutes and decadent hors d'oeuvres, as famous chefs like Eric Ripert and Anthony Bourdain pose for photos and gossip with their peers before the night’s main event: an announcement that could change their lives and the fate of America's dining scene. Édouard Michelin takes the stage. His company, Michelin, is one of the world's largest manufacturers of tires, but they also produce a restaurant guide that has dictated the fortunes of European restaurants for over 100 years. Now, the Michelin Guide, and its coveted stars, will be coming to America. When Michelin descends on New York City, which restaurants win? Which lose? And how does the battle itself transform American food culture? Special thanks to Peter Esmond, the former general manager of Per Se and current sales leader at DoorDash; Eric Ripert, chef of Le Bernardin in New York City; and Kathleen Squires, a food and travel writer whose work appears in the Wall Street Journal, Conde Nast Traveler and more. To stay updated: historythisweekpodcast.com To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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0:30.3	The History Channel, original podcast.
0:35.9	History this week, February 23, 2005.
0:40.3	I'm Sally Helm.
0:43.3	The Bendam is a funny-looking character, white, puffy, made of tires.
0:55.5	We're using his given name, but you might know him better as the Michelin Man.
1:01.0	And today, Bibbendam, or, okay, a person dressed as Bibbendom, has been all over New York City.
1:08.9	He goes to Central Park, takes in the trees.
1:11.9	He visits Times Square.
1:13.6	We don't know whether he made it to a Broadway show.
1:16.0	And when he poses for pictures, he holds in his bulbous hands a giant fork and spoon.
1:26.3	Because Babendam's employer, Michelin, they don't just make tires.
1:31.9	They also publish the most famous restaurant guide in the world.
1:40.3	That night, at New York's Gotham Hall, Bibend rubs elbows with some culinary big shots, Daniel Ballude, Eric Repair, Anthony Bourdain.
1:52.1	This city is a top food destination.
1:56.0	But, until now, the Michelin Guide has not seen fit to bestow its famous stars upon the culinary elite of New York.
2:06.8	They have been operating for over 100 years, but only in Europe.
2:12.7	Now, that is about to change.
	...

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