How do you find a good restaurant these days?
It's Been a Minute
NPR
4.6 • 8.8K Ratings
🗓️ 28 July 2025
⏱️ 17 minutes
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Summary
You've heard them referenced on The Bear and maybe even looked out for them when deciding your next meal: Michelin stars. The prestigious one to three star rating system awarded to the best of the best in dining. But Americans are expected to spend 7% less on eating out this summer, and as menu prices increase, Brittany wonders: what really gets people into a restaurant these days?
This is... Food for Thought. And for the next few weeks, we're looking at the way food and dining shape our communities and culture.
Brittany talks with reporter and video host for The Times' Food section and New York Times Cooking, Priya Krishna, and Eater correspondent Jaya Saxena, to find out.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | This message comes from how to be a better human, a podcast from TED. |
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| 0:19.0 | Hello, hello. I'm Brittany Luce, and you're listening to It's Been a Minute from NPR, a show about what's going on in culture and why it doesn't happen by accident. |
| 0:41.8 | You've heard them referenced on the bear and maybe even looked out for them when deciding your eating itinerary in a new city. I'm, of course, talking about Michelin Stars. The prestigious |
| 0:48.8 | one to three-star rating system awarded to the best of the best in dining. In fact, one of the most rewarded |
| 0:56.9 | Michelin star chefs, Joelle Robichon, said that just one star can bring in about 20% more |
| 1:04.0 | business and in an industry notorious for its slim margins, you can imagine how appealing that would be. |
| 1:11.0 | But Americans are expected to spend 7% less on eating out this summer. |
| 1:16.1 | And as menu prices increase, it may be wonder, are Michelin stars really what get people |
| 1:21.9 | into restaurants these days? |
| 1:23.6 | I feel like there's two things that get me in the door somewhere, and it's either a place that does like a classic thing really, really exceptionally well. |
| 1:33.9 | That's New York Times reporter and video host for the Times food section, Priya Krishna. |
| 1:38.6 | Or it's a place that feels like it is telling such a distinctive story that could only be told by that chef |
| 1:47.9 | in that place. And eater correspondent, Jaya Saxena. The food can be amazing and the room can be |
| 1:55.7 | beautiful and all this stuff. But what keeps me returning to a restaurant going back a second or a third time |
| 2:01.8 | is really like service. I reached out to these foodies to get their take on what gets people |
| 2:07.7 | off their couch and onto open table. Spoiler alert, it's probably not Michelin Stars. |
| 2:16.0 | There are people who had no idea that I wrote restaurant reviews and just tell me they |
| 2:21.6 | love watching my restaurant reviews because on the New York Times cooking, we like put |
| 2:25.9 | all of the reviews up as TikToks. |
| 2:28.0 | It's no surprise that food influencers on apps like TikTok or Instagram have a huge impact |
... |
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