{"id":105,"date":"2026-05-21T12:09:12","date_gmt":"2026-05-21T12:09:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=105"},"modified":"2026-05-21T12:09:12","modified_gmt":"2026-05-21T12:09:12","slug":"michelin-honors-21-bay-area-california-restaurants-as-new-discoveries","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=105","title":{"rendered":"Michelin honors 21 Bay Area\/California restaurants as \u2018new discoveries\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"<div>\n<div>\n<p>The dining world\u2019s prestigious Michelin Guide on Wednesday named 21 restaurants in the Bay Area and Southern California as \u201cnew discoveries\u201d \u2014 a prelude to the release in late June of the guide\u2019s 2026 California stars.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=103\">Yelp\u2019s Top 100 BBQ list: San Bruno, SF, Sunnyvale restaurants make the cut<\/a><\/p>\n<p>These \u201cculinary gems\u201d include the recently opened Vicinity, an exclusive 16-seat Los Gatos restaurant from chef Julian Silvera and owners Denise and Michael Thornberry; two Oakland restaurants, Joodooboo and Popoca; and four in San Francisco, including Minnie Bell\u2019s Soul Movement.<\/p>\n<p>Michelin highlighted \u201cnew discoveries\u201d for the first time in the summer of 2021 and has done so every year since. Of the 21 finds on this list \u2014 the second round of early discoveries for 2026 \u2014 nine are in Los Angeles, one is in Beverly Hills, one is in Santa Barbara, one in La Jolla, one in Palm Springs and one in Rosemead. No additional restaurants north of SF were featured.<\/p>\n<p>On guide.michelin.com, these establishments are listed as \u201cNew.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Will the praise for these restaurants be elevated to Michelin stars when the guide is released later this year? Or become Bib Gourmand honors, the Michelin awards given to restaurants that offer \u201cexcellent food at reasonable prices\u201d to diners? It\u2019s a wait-and-see situation for these chefs.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=101\">AT&amp;T, blocked by California regulators from scrapping landlines, launches double-barreled appeal at federal level<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Here is the list of new discoveries. Come back to read dining notes from the Michelin inspectors:<\/p>\n<p><strong>Los Gatos:<\/strong> Vicinity<\/p>\n<p><strong>Oakland:<\/strong> Joodooboo, Popoca<\/p>\n<div>\n<\/div>\n<p><strong>San Francisco:<\/strong> Kitchen Istanbul, Maria Isabel, Minnie Bell\u2019s Soul Movement, Via Aurelia<\/p>\n<p><strong>Los Angeles:<\/strong> ALTO, Casa Leo, Electric Bleu, Kojima, Lielle, Lynx, The Mulberry, Sonoratown, SORA Craft Kitchen<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=99\">U.S. Capitol cops sue to block $1.8 billion fund that could aid Jan. 6 attackers<\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Beverly Hills:<\/strong> Miura<\/p>\n<p><strong>La Jolla:<\/strong> Lucien<\/p>\n<div>\n<\/div>\n<p><strong>Palm Springs:<\/strong> Alice B.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Rosemead:<\/strong> Good Alley<\/p>\n<p><strong>Santa Barbara:<\/strong> Monte\u2019s<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Will the praise for these restaurants be elevated to Michelin stars when the guide is released later this year?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":104,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-105","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-things-to-do"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.6 - 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