Dining at a Michelin-starred restaurant may be a dream come true for many foodies around the world — but the actual experience of dining at the restaurants can be a little bizarre.
Created in 1900 by brothers Andre and Edouard Michelin of tire manufacturer Michelin, the guide for motorists has become a reference for foodies and is known for making and breaking careers.
However, these restaurants go far beyond the norm — with cooking outside the box and menus that will leave many with their jaws on the ground.
Here, FEMAIL takes a look at some of the weirdest Michelin restaurants out there:
Serves raw meat – and edible mold
This micro-serving of raw meat sits atop edible mold that’s part of the Spanish Michelin diner’s theme
Mugaritz in San Sabastian, Spain doesn’t look like much from the outside, but it serves artful avant-garde dishes.
Dishes include one meal that requires guests to eat from a face-shaped plate with edible flowers, while another snack looks almost identical to an open book.
One of the strangest features of the menu is that diners are invited to try edible stones.
Meanwhile, the nature-themed event extends to the meat aisle, where a hunk of raw meat sits atop edible “mold” with a sprinkling of sea salt.
Visitors on TripAdvisor said they were pleasantly surprised by the 20-25 course meal.
Some described it as a “meaningful, gastronomic experience rather than a simple lunch,” while others implored inquisitive foodies to “ignore the haters.”
Those who aren’t fans of the elaborate menu have called the £300 feast “inedible” and didn’t necessarily want to pay a £220 deposit.
This beautiful bed plate with edible flowers looks more like a work of art than a meal
The varied variety offers many small creations from a course in book form that looks like edible wafer paper and edible stone cows
Dishes served on iPads
A Michelin-starred San Francisco restaurant and farm in Bolinas, California, Quince prides itself on its evolving menu and futuristic way of serving food.
Chef Micheal Tusk oversees the restaurant in San Francisco’s Jackson Square, famous for its white truffle dishes.
The tasting menu changes daily and is prepared by the team to focus on a single ingredient, either truffles, scallops or squab, a young pigeon.
Diners who require a $200 (£167) deposit to dine there cough up a sizable sum to dine at the unusual restaurant.
Among the most unusual dishes is one called A Dog in Search of Gold, in which a meal is served on a truffle-hunting iPad placed in a box.
The dish consists of crispy chestnuts and truffles made from celeriac, porcini mushrooms and ricotta dusted with porcini mushroom powder.
If you want to eat there on New Year’s Eve you better be prepared to put the money in your hands as it costs $595 (£491) per person.
Possibly one of the most expensive ways to serve food, even when it comes to Michelin restaurants – these truffles are presented on an iPad in a box surrounded by crumbs
These creative flowers look like mini windmills on a stick – serving mousse and a “moss” look outer layer
Leftovers – with a dish served on an imprint of the chef’s lips
Bro’s in Lecce made headlines last year when a brutal review of the restaurant went viral.
At the time, readers were enthralled by descriptions of the “disastrous” meal, which consisted of edible shredded paper, “rancid ricotta,” foam served in a plaster cast of the chef’s mouth, and “an oyster sandwich that tasted like Newark Airport.” ‘
Everywhereist travel writer Geraldine DeRuiter, 41, and seven of her friends visited Bros’, a restaurant in Lecce, Italy with a coveted Michelin star.
But the 27 courses they were served not only left them unimpressed, they also walked away starving.
Since then, numerous TripAdvisor reviews have divided guests after visiting Bros’.
give us a kiss Served no-utensil at Bros, this citrus foam drips from a white shimmer off Chef Floriano Pellegrino’s lips
Unusual dishes at the restaurant include a marshmallow and jelly dish shaped like an insect but flavored like squid (left), while a “vegetable dish” is served on a thread and straw mat (right).
Another dish served by the restaurant is a simple, small square (left), while another dish features a thin carrot on a carrot-shaped plate (right).
Bros earned four out of five stars on Trip Advisor with 409 reviews – people have praised the restaurant for its innovation, including a clay leaf plate and ceramic serving bowl
With a Michelin star, it’s the only Michelin eatery in Leece and costs over £150 per person for a 20-25 course tasting menu.
Some guests appreciated the art, but warned others, “If you want to eat and eat, ‘Bros’ isn’t the place for you.”
Clad in avant-garde furniture, the restaurant serves a five-hour tasting menu that includes a single scoop of olive-flavored ice cream, a course called “Frozen Air,” different types of foam, rancid cheese, and a squid-flavored marshmallow.
Not to be missed is a “meat-enriched” course, where guests slurp “meat droplets” that are served on the plate with an eyedropper.
Chefs Floriano Pellegrino and Isabella Potì have claimed they “create art” and serve with “theatrical flair.”
Bros have been contacted for comment.
Serves ants as a dish
While dining at a Michelin restaurant may be a dream for many, here FEMAIL reveals the bizarre reality of dining at one of the acclaimed restaurants (pictured, ants being served at the DOM in São Paulo
DOM in São Paulo was founded by Alex Atala, who uses traditional Brazilian cooking methods to conjure up his artistic cuisine.
Although it has earned a reputation as one of the top restaurants in the world, having previously been ranked 11th in the world, some of the dishes are a bit unusual.
Its two-Michelin-star restaurant serves real ants as a course, which guests have described as “delicious.”
The tiny portion of insects is served on an artificial moss ball.
Others called it a “gimmick” and said the crunchy critter didn’t “add much to the experience.”
Apart from the insect-themed element, the menu is pretty standard for a Michelin star – with edible flowers and ornate plates for a £200-a-head menu.
Food carved into works of art
KINGDOM OF THE GLASS SKULL: This glass skull platter is a unique way to eat and the food itself also includes a small skull skewer
Alinea in Lincoln Park, Chicago was named the best restaurant in the world by Elite Traveler and the best restaurant in North America by The World’s 50 Best Restaurants.
It’s one of only 14 restaurants in the United States to earn the coveted Michelin three-star rating.
Chef Grant Achatz offers three distinct dining experiences for guests including The Kitchen, The Gallery and The Salon.
The Michelin-starred restaurant that has taken the edible art theme so prevalent in the fine dining world to the extreme.
Alinea’s waiters drop food onto this platter to create edible works of art – the creativity has earned the restaurant three Michelin stars
A sugar spectacle creates an unusual dessert for guests (left). Another dish invites diners to get their own giant tweezers to lift tiny portions of herbs and an egg yolk in a creamed bowl (right).
Waiters and waitresses physically drop food onto a board and use it to “create” art, creating a unique, colorful canvas for guests to enjoy.
If you don’t fancy having Picasso served on a plate, there’s an option to eat a tiny meat dish from an ornate glass skull with flowers for eyes.
Alinea has been widely praised for its innovative approach to modern cuisine.
TripAdvisor reviews have called it “incredible” and “a theater of the unexpected,” but some are unconvinced that “there’s a reason you’re paying upfront.”
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