Located less than five miles from his hometown, the Martín Berasategui Restaurant celebrates the bold flavors of Basque Country cuisine, using both classic and modern techniques. When Berasategui began his culinary career, there were no Michelin-starred restaurants in Basque Country, meaning he is now often heralded as a leader in the distinctive cuisine and accredited for bringing it to the world stage.īerasatugei’s flagship restaurant, Restaurante Martín Berasategui – which he opened with his wife Oneka Arregui in 1993 – received its first Michelin star just six months after opening and was awarded the maximum three stars by 2001. Although born in Spain’s Basque Country, Berasategui completed the majority of his culinary training in France, where he learned classic techniques under the likes of Didier Oudil, Michel Guerard and, at a later date, Alain Ducasse. Martin Berasategui – 12 Michelin starsīerasatugei’s flagship restaurant, Restaurante Martín Berasategui received its first Michelin star just six months after opening / ©Restaurante Martín BerasateguiĪt the time of writing, renowned Spanish chef Martín Berasategui boasts a total of 12 Michelin stars across his wide network of restaurants, the majority of which are in his home country. While each of the two three-star restaurants maintains Ducasse’s signature style, each has a slightly different focus: The Dorchester offers classic French haute cuisine in modern settings, whereas Le Louis XV serves traditional Ducasse dishes with a Mediterranean influence. Le Louis XV also holds the title of the first restaurant to ever achieve such an accolade. Now it is Alain Ducasse at The Dorchester and Le Louis XV that tend to be the most well-known – and the most awarded, with each boasting the maximum three Michelin stars. The new chef, Jean Imbert, has since won back one of them. Previously it was Alain Ducasse at Plaza Athénée that was regarded as the chef’s flagship, but last year, 21 years after he first took the helm, Ducasse departed from the iconic restaurant, and with it went three stars from his portfolio. Under his leadership, the restaurant was awarded two Michelin stars in 1984.

Ducasse forged his career underneath some of the most noted chefs of the era, including Michel Guérard and Gaston Lenôtre, eventually taking on his first head chef role at La Terrasse at Hotel Juana. Although he currently has a total of 20 Michelin stars across his restaurant empire, throughout the years the figure has been almost double this. View all newsletters Sign up to our newsletter Latest in Luxury By the Elite Traveler team Sign up hereĪlain Ducasse will surely go down in history as one of the culinary greats. And so, without further ado, meet some of the world’s most revered living culinary masters.

With this in mind, our guide is a carefully curated list celebrating the chefs with the most Michelin stars in accordance with those awarded to their restaurant empires.

For example, Alain Ducasse, who leads this list with a remarkable 20 stars, is no longer head chef of his eponymous restaurant at The Dorchester, and yet the restaurant’s impressive three stars remain a testament to Ducasse’s legacy. Despite this, Michelin stars are tied closely to a chef’s career and are often used as a measurement of performance in the highly competitive world of fine dining. Widely regarded as the golden standard of fine dining, it is only by serving dishes of the highest caliber that talented chefs can hope to stand out with the most Michelin stars.Īt this point, it’s important to note that stars are awarded to restaurants and not to individual chefs themselves. Of course, impressing the Michelin inspectors isn’t easy. For many, achieving a coveted star – or three – is the high point of their career. Goldman Sachs Private Wealth ManagementĮvery year chefs at the best restaurants across the globe wait nervously to find out how they’ve fared in the Michelin guide.

History of michelin stars