You have to remember that Michelin is a French company, so the Michelin star guide was originally about getting the French public to drive to French restaurants.
There’s one in Hong Kong that is famously inexpensive for a 1 star, like $10-15 USD for a meal of dim sum. I think I read somewhere it’s the cheapest 1 star restaurant in the world.
The one I had in mind was Tim Ho Wan in Sham Shui Po, but they have restaurants throughout the city. But looking at the current Michelin Guide, I see it’s just “Michelin recommended” as opposed to 1 star. I’m not sure if the rating has been changed since I went or if I’m mixing it up with a different one, but either way it was very good and service was crazy efficient! Gonna have to check out the one in the airport if I’m ever in HK again. The whole food scene in HK is great, never had a bad or even average meal there.
It helped them sell more tires, it associated the tires name with higher quality, it made money by itself, and it pushed the mascot into an icon capable of making money by itself.
All for something that sounds like a dr. Doofenshmittz plan.
Meanwhile the Michelin OEM tires on my car were the worse tires i ever had. Didnt last 20k miles and they didnt have much grip on dry pavement from day one.
Does it actually make money for them somehow? Or does it just keep their name in the public’s collective mind?
Maybe it associates their name with high quality as well.
You have to remember that Michelin is a French company, so the Michelin star guide was originally about getting the French public to drive to French restaurants.
The French car-owning public… In 1900. So basically getting the ultra rich to drive to very expensive restaurants.
Even a restaurant with one star nowadays is a $60 seat minimum. The best restaurants in the world are expensive.
They also have given stars to hole in the walls and hawker stalls. Like this one
https://guide.michelin.com/en/article/travel/behind-the-scenes-the-world-s-first-michelin-starred-street-food-stall
There’s one in Hong Kong that is famously inexpensive for a 1 star, like $10-15 USD for a meal of dim sum. I think I read somewhere it’s the cheapest 1 star restaurant in the world.
Is that the one in the airport? It’s fantastic.
The one I had in mind was Tim Ho Wan in Sham Shui Po, but they have restaurants throughout the city. But looking at the current Michelin Guide, I see it’s just “Michelin recommended” as opposed to 1 star. I’m not sure if the rating has been changed since I went or if I’m mixing it up with a different one, but either way it was very good and service was crazy efficient! Gonna have to check out the one in the airport if I’m ever in HK again. The whole food scene in HK is great, never had a bad or even average meal there.
It helped them sell more tires, it associated the tires name with higher quality, it made money by itself, and it pushed the mascot into an icon capable of making money by itself.
All for something that sounds like a dr. Doofenshmittz plan.
They make a bunch of money selling the guides.
It’s become a whole side business.
Shrugs. I have never eaten at a starred restaurant and I have never specifically purchased tires from Michelin.
I have, because they’re amazing tires for my climate- the cross climate ones.
Meanwhile the Michelin OEM tires on my car were the worse tires i ever had. Didnt last 20k miles and they didnt have much grip on dry pavement from day one.
OEM tires are engineered for gas mileage, not usefulness. It’s all about the epa rating
You’d think after ford and firestone was sued for faulty tires they would change that.