Cost of Michelin Star Restaurants in America's Largest Cities
Dining at a Michelin Star restaurant means you get to enjoy the absolute best in outstanding cooking. But, if you’re on a budget, it’s a good idea to plan ahead -- as a one-star restaurant can cost $50 to $75 per person.
MoneyLion found the largest 50 cities in America via the U.S. Census. For each city, the number of restaurants at each Michelin designation and price level were sourced from the Michelin Guide.
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Of the 50 cities, 28 are not listed in the Michelin Guide. So you will not see any restaurants from major cities such as Phoenix; Jacksonville, Florida; Fort Worth, Texas; Columbus, Ohio; Indianapolis or Seattle.
Key Findings
New York City has the most Michelin restaurants (69), and most of them cost $75 or more per person. The breakdown at that price comes out to 43 one-star, 14 two-star and five three-star restaurants.
Budget-conscious diners can snag a meal for $50 to $75 at a one-star Michelin restaurant in seven major cities: New York (7); San Francisco (7); Oakland, California (7); Miami (3); Washington (2); Denver (2) and Austin, Texas (1).
New York ties with two California cities for the most one-star restaurants with meals costing $50 to $75. There are seven eateries in New York, San Francisco and Oakland with Michelin cuisine at that price range.
Six major cities have 10 or more one-star restaurants where meals cost over $75 per person: New York (43), Los Angeles (18), Washington (17), Chicago (15), San Francisco (11) and Miami (10).
Here’s what you can expect to pay dining out at Michelin Star restaurants in the 20 largest U.S. cities in the Michelin Guide.
1. New York
1-star restaurants that cost $50 to $75 per person: 7
1-star restaurants that cost more than $75 per person: 43
2-star restaurants (all cost more than $75 per person): 14
3-star restaurants (all cost more than $75 per person): 5
Population: 8,483,844
2. Los Angeles
1-star restaurants that cost $50 to $75 per person: 0
1-star restaurants that cost more than $75 per person: 18
2-star restaurants (all cost more than $75 per person): 3
3-star restaurants (all cost more than $75 per person): 2
Population: 3,857,263
3. Washington, D.C.
1-star restaurants that cost $50 to $75 per person: 2
1-star restaurants that cost more than $75 per person: 17
2-star restaurants (all cost more than $75 per person): 2
3-star restaurants (all cost more than $75 per person): 0
Population: 681,294
4. San Francisco
1-star restaurants that cost $50 to $75 per person: 7
1-star restaurants that cost more than $75 per person: 11
2-star restaurants (all cost more than $75 per person): 8
3-star restaurants (all cost more than $75 per person): 3
Population: 830,235
5. Oakland, California
1-star restaurants that cost $50 to $75 per person: 7
1-star restaurants that cost more than $75 per person: 9
2-star restaurants (all cost more than $75 per person): 8
3-star restaurants (all cost more than $75 per person): 3
Population: 439,418
6. Chicago
1-star restaurants that cost $50 to $75 per person: 0
1-star restaurants that cost more than $75 per person: 15
2-star restaurants (all cost more than $75 per person): 4
3-star restaurants (all cost more than $75 per person): 1
Population: 2,711,226
7. Miami
1-star restaurants that cost $50 to $75 per person: 3
1-star restaurants that cost more than $75 per person: 10
2-star restaurants (all cost more than $75 per person): 1
3-star restaurants (all cost more than $75 per person): 0
Population: 459,745
8. Atlanta
1-star restaurants that cost $50 to $75 per person: 0
1-star restaurants that cost more than $75 per person: 8
2-star restaurants (all cost more than $75 per person): 0
3-star restaurants (all cost more than $75 per person): 0
Population: 505,268
9. Austin, Texas
1-star restaurants that cost $50 to $75 per person: 1
1-star restaurants that cost more than $75 per person: 3
2-star restaurants (all cost more than $75 per person): 0
3-star restaurants (all cost more than $75 per person): 0
Population: 979,539
10. Denver
1-star restaurants that cost $50 to $75 per person: 2
1-star restaurants that cost more than $75 per person: 4
2-star restaurants (all cost more than $75 per person): 1
3-star restaurants (all cost more than $75 per person): 0
Population: 718,877
11. Long Beach, California
1-star restaurants that cost $50 to $75 per person: 0
1-star restaurants that cost more than $75 per person: 4
2-star restaurants (all cost more than $75 per person): 1
3-star restaurants (all cost more than $75 per person): 0
Population: 455,548
12. Houston
1-star restaurants that cost $50 to $75 per person: 0
1-star restaurants that cost more than $75 per person: 4
2-star restaurants (all cost more than $75 per person): 0
3-star restaurants (all cost more than $75 per person): 0
Population: 2,328,253
13. Tampa, Florida
1-star restaurants that cost $50 to $75 per person: 0
1-star restaurants that cost more than $75 per person: 0
2-star restaurants (all cost more than $75 per person): 3
3-star restaurants (all cost more than $75 per person): 0
Population: 401,618
14. Philadelphia
1-star restaurants that cost $50 to $75 per person: 0
1-star restaurants that cost more than $75 per person: 3
2-star restaurants (all cost more than $75 per person): 0
3-star restaurants (all cost more than $75 per person): 0
Population: 1,579,706
15. Nashville, Tennessee
1-star restaurants that cost $50 to $75 per person: 0
1-star restaurants that cost more than $75 per person: 3
2-star restaurants (all cost more than $75 per person): 0
3-star restaurants (all cost more than $75 per person): 0
Population: 690,130
16. San Antonio
1-star restaurants that cost $50 to $75 per person: 0
1-star restaurants that cost more than $75 per person: 3
2-star restaurants (all cost more than $75 per person): 0
3-star restaurants (all cost more than $75 per person): 0
Population: 1,479,835
17. Dallas
1-star restaurants that cost $50 to $75 per person: 0
1-star restaurants that cost more than $75 per person: 2
2-star restaurants (all cost more than $75 per person): 0
3-star restaurants (all cost more than $75 per person): 0
Population: 1,307,930
18. San Jose, California
1-star restaurants that cost $50 to $75 per person: 0
1-star restaurants that cost more than $75 per person: 2
2-star restaurants (all cost more than $75 per person): 0
3-star restaurants (all cost more than $75 per person): 0
Population: 990,138
19. Sacramento, California
1-star restaurants that cost $50 to $75 per person: 0
1-star restaurants that cost more than $75 per person: 2
2-star restaurants (all cost more than $75 per person): 0
3-star restaurants (all cost more than $75 per person): 0
Population: 528,706
20. San Diego
1-star restaurants that cost $50 to $75 per person: 0
1-star restaurants that cost more than $75 per person: 1
2-star restaurants (all cost more than $75 per person): 0
3-star restaurants (all cost more than $75 per person): 1
Population: 1,389,526
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Methodology: For this study, MoneyLion analyzed the largest 50 cities to find out how many Michelin star restaurants are in each city. Populations were sourced from the U.S. Census. For each city, the number of restaurants at each Michelin designation and the number of restaurants at each price level were sourced from the Michelin Guide. The cities were sorted by the number of one-star restaurants. All data is up to date as of May 29, 2026.
This article was provided by MoneyLion.com for informational purposes only and should not be construed as financial, legal or tax advice.
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