List of Michelin-starred restaurants in Washington, D.C.

This article contains a complete list of Michelin-starred restaurants in Washington, D.C. The Michelin Guides have been published by the French tire company Michelin since 1900. They were designed as a guide to tell drivers about eateries they recommended to visit and to subtly sponsor their tires, by encouraging drivers to use their cars more and therefore need to replace the tires as they wore out. Over time, the stars that were given out started to become more valuable.^[1]

Multiple anonymous Michelin inspectors visit the restaurants several times. They rate the restaurants on five criteria: "quality of products", "mastery of flavor and cooking techniques", "the personality of the chef represented in the dining experience", "value for money", and "consistency between inspectors' visits".^[1][2] Inspectors have at least ten years of expertise and create a list of popular restaurants supported by media reports, reviews, and diner popularity. If they reach a consensus, Michelin awards restaurants from one to three stars based on its evaluation methodology: One star means "high-quality cooking, worth a stop", two stars signify "excellent cooking, worth a detour", and three stars denote "exceptional cuisine, worth a special journey".^[3] The stars are not permanent and restaurants are constantly being re-evaluated. If the criteria are not met, the restaurant will lose its stars.^[1]

The Washington, D.C. guide started in 2017, and is the first US Michelin Guide released in a new region since the Chicago guide in 2011.^[4] It is the fourth US guide after New York City, San Francisco, and Chicago. Although originally stating that all restaurants would be within the city limits, Michelin awarded stars to The Inn at Little Washington, which is in Virginia.^[5]

As of the 2023 guide, there are 25 restaurants in the Washington metropolitan area with a Michelin-star rating.

Michelin-starred restaurants

Name	Cuisine	Location	2017	2018	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023	2024
Albi	Middle Eastern	DC – Navy Yard	—	—	—	—	—			TBA Dec. 9
Blue Duck Tavern	American	DC – West End				—	—	—	—
Bresca	American	DC – Logan Circle	—	—
Causa	Peruvian	DC – Shaw	—	—	—	—	—	—
Cranes	Fusion	DC – Penn Quarter	—	—	—	—			—
The Dabney	American	DC – Shaw
El Cielo	Colombian	DC – Union Market	—	—	—	—
Fiola	Italian	DC – Penn Quarter
Gravitas	American	DC – Ivy City	—	—	—
Imperfecto	Latin American	DC – West End	—	—	—	—	—
Inn at Little Washington	American	Virginia – Rappahannock County
Jônt	Contemporary	DC – Logan Circle	—	—	—	—
Kinship	French	DC – Mount Vernon Square
Komi	Mediterranean	DC – Dupont Circle	—					Closed[a]
Little Pearl	Contemporary	DC – Capitol Hill	—	—	—
Masseria	Italian	DC – Union Market
Maydan	Middle Eastern	DC – Columbia Heights	—	—	—
Métier	French	DC – Mount Vernon Square	—
minibar	Contemporary	DC – Penn Quarter
Oyster Oyster	Vegetarian	DC – Shaw	—	—	—	—	—
Pineapple & Pearls	Contemporary	DC – Capitol Hill
Plume	Contemporary	DC – Downtown						Closed[7]
Rania	Indian	DC – Penn Quarter	—	—	—	—	—	—
Reverie	Contemporary	DC – Georgetown	—	—	—	—	—
Rooster & Owl	Fusion	DC – Columbia Heights	—	—	—	—
Rose's Luxury	Contemporary	DC – Capitol Hill
Siren	Seafood	DC – Logan Circle	—	—		Closed[8]
Sushi Nakazawa	Japanese	DC – Federal Triangle	—	—
Sushi Taro	Japanese	DC – Dupont Circle						—	—
Tail Up Goat	Contemporary	DC – Adams Morgan
Xiquet	Spanish	DC – Glover Park	—	—	—	—
Reference			[9]	[10]	[11]	[12]	[13]	[14]	[15]	[16]

Key

	Indicates a restaurant with one Michelin star
	Indicates a restaurant with two Michelin stars
	Indicates a restaurant with three Michelin stars

• List of Michelin 3-star restaurants in the United States
• List of restaurants

• Michelin Guide Washington, D.C. 2017. Michelin Travel Publications. 2017. ISBN 978-2-06-721958-8.
• Michelin Guide Washington, D.C. 2018. Michelin Travel Publications. 2018. ISBN 978-2-06-722093-5.
• Michelin Guide Washington, D.C. 2019. Michelin Travel Publications. 2019. ISBN 978-2-06-723055-2.
• Michelin Guide Washington, D.C. 2020. Michelin Travel Publications. 2020. ISBN 978-2-06-723900-5.

• Michelin Guide - Washington, D.C.