Madrid Takes Centre Stage As Spain Michelin Restaurant Awards Announced

Spain´s reputation for culinary excellence took another step forward at the recently held gala to announce the 2022 Michelin Guide for Spain and Portugal at the Palau de las Artes in Valencia.

The 2022 list recognises 1,362 establishments throughout Spain, Portugal, and Andorra, including 11 Three-Star restaurants, 40 Two-Star restaurants, 211 One-Star restaurants and 284 Bib Gourmand restaurants.

A total of 31 Spanish restaurants received new stars; for most, it was their first, but four of them have moved up a notch to become two-star establishments.

In the 2021 edition of the guide, there were 11 three-star restaurants, and this situation remains unchanged for the 2022 edition. They are: Arzak, which has held this honor for three decades, and counts on Elena Arzak at the helm; Akelarre (chef Pedro Subijana); Martín Berasategui (run by the chef of the same name); Lasarte Barcelona (also run by Berasategui, with Paolo Casagrande); Celler de Can Roca; Quique Dacosta; Azurmendi (chef Eneko Atxa); Aponiente (Ángel León); ABaC (Jordi Cruz); DiverXo (Dabid Muñoz ); and Cenador de Amós (Jesús Sánchez).

Madrid newcomer the Smoked Room, won 2 stars – a feat all the more remarkable as it only opened in June of this year. The judges were “enchanted by the preparations with their subtle touches of smoke.”  The guide recognises the Smoked Room, as “a particularly trendy restaurant in Madrid, the young chef Massimiliano Delle Vedove demonstrates his mastery of cooking techniques, in this case charcoal grilling, which particularly impressed our inspectors, who were delighted by the subtle smoky dishes”.

The restaurant situated in the Castellana Hyatt Regency Hesperia hotel, which was previously home to the iconic Santceloni. Both Smoked Room and neighbouring Leña belong to Grupo Dani Garcia .

Other new additions for Madrid included  Deessa ( in the newly refurbished Ritz Hotel and Quimbaya run by Colombian chef Edwin Rodríguez, both with one star.

“Despite being a complicated year for the gastronomy sector, the gourmets will be delighted to see that Spain and Portugal are seeing an impressive number of new restaurants with stars springing up throughout the territory,” said a judge.

The pandemic has claimed many victims for a sector that has struggled to overcome

the impact of lockdowns and capacity restrictions.truggled in the hospitality sector and this latest edition of the Michelin Guide reflects this. A total of 24 restaurants in the Spain and Portugal guide have been left without stars – 16 of these due to closures or a move to new premises, and eight that have lost the distinction: Monastrell, Orobianco, Manuel Alonso Restaurante, Es Racó d’Es Teix, Casamar, El Club Allard, Sents and Alejandro.