Two St. Petersburg restaurants have broken into the Michelin Guide, earning spots in the 2026 Michelin Guide Florida selection that was revealed on May 28 — the first time the famed restaurant guide has covered the entire state.
As St. Pete Patch first reported, downtown waterfront newcomer Elliott Aster and the Tokyo-inspired In Between Days both landed on Michelin’s “recommended” list. The guide’s hierarchy runs from that recommended tier up through the Bib Gourmand value award to its one-, two- and three-Star ratings, so a recommended nod marks a restaurant inspectors consider worth a visit.
Meet the two St. Pete honorees
Elliott Aster brings fine dining to The Vinoy Resort & Golf Club on St. Petersburg’s downtown waterfront. It opened in May 2025 in the space long occupied by Marchand’s Bar & Grill, which closed in 2020, and it is a concept from Michelin-starred chef Lee Wolen and Chicago’s Boka Restaurant Group. The menu leans Italian steakhouse — wood-fired steaks and house-made pastas served beneath high ceilings and chandeliers.
In Between Days, set inside a converted house at 2340 1st Ave. S, calls itself Florida’s first Tokyo-style sake bar and vinyl house. Inspired by Tokyo’s underground listening bars, it pairs sake-based cocktails and slow-spinning records with a short, rotating menu of small plates such as gyoza, hamachi and oysters. The owners said they were “humbled to be included,” promising “much more soon” on social media.
A first-ever statewide guide
Michelin launched in Florida in 2022 as a partnership with Visit Florida, starting with Miami, Orlando and Tampa. It added Greater Fort Lauderdale, the Palm Beaches and the St. Pete-Clearwater area in 2025, then expanded statewide for 2026, sending its anonymous inspectors from the Panhandle to Key West. The full 2026 selection spans about 200 restaurants across 41 cuisine types, including 26 carrying Stars.
The ceremony minted two new One Star restaurants — Emelina in West Palm Beach and Mutra in Miami — while Tampa’s Fat Beet Farm Kitchen and Bakery earned a Green Star for sustainable cooking. “What began just a few years ago has grown into something truly remarkable,” said Gwendal Poullennec, international director of the Michelin Guide, in the guide’s 2026 announcement.
What it means for Tampa Bay dining
For a region still new to the guide, the nods are meaningful — even if the bigger prizes remain out of reach. No Pinellas County restaurant has earned a Star or a Bib Gourmand in the two years the area has been eligible, Creative Loafing Tampa noted, though established St. Pete spots including Il Ritorno, Sushi Sho Rexley and Fortu held onto their recommended status. Visit St. Pete-Clearwater, which signed a reported two-year, $90,000-a-year deal to bring Michelin to Pinellas, is betting the exposure pays off in visitors.
The honors cap a busy stretch for the wider Tampa Bay dining scene. Across the bay, Safety Harbor’s Tides Market also kept its recommended status, while Tampa held several one-Star kitchens. Pinellas tourism leaders have increasingly pitched the region’s restaurants, museums and walkable downtowns as reasons to visit alongside its well-known Gulf beaches.
“Our culinary culture continues to shine,” said Brian Lowack, the agency’s president and CEO, adding that more travelers are choosing the area specifically for its restaurants. A Star or a Bib Gourmand may still be a few seasons away. For now, locals and visitors have two more reasons to book a table in a beach town that is fast building a reputation for what is on the plate, not just what is on the sand.
