Boston, MA
Should Boston Pay for the Michelin Guide? Readers Weigh In.

Last week, New York Times food reporter Julia Moskin examined what happened when Michelin launched its sought-after dining guide in Colorado. The story is yet another look at Michelin’s financial model, which hinges on tourism boards paying the tire company to bring in its inspectors and publish the guides. But it’s not entirely pay-to-play, according to Michelin. The guides director “said that ‘vibrancy’ and ‘dynamic potential’ are also taken into consideration, as an explanation of why rapidly growing Florida and Colorado — and Atlanta, coming next year — have guides, while New Orleans and New England do not,” Moskin writes.
In May, Eater reported that Michelin talked to Boston’s tourism board, MeetBoston, last year to gauge their interest in paying to launch a guide in this city. MeetBoston declined to pay for the guide at the time. “Making that kind of investment for what would likely be a smaller subset of our restaurant community probably wouldn’t make a lot of sense for us,” MeetBoston CEO Martha Sheridan said.
Meanwhile, Michelin is steadily sweeping through North America. According to the New York Times, Colorado tourism boards and resort companies collectively paid over $700,000 for the state’s just-released guide, which includes just five starred restaurants. Atlanta chefs are bracing for impact when their first guide is published next month, which reportedly cost Atlanta tourism officials $1 million.
With Michelin back in the news, Eater asked readers in last weekend’s newsletter whether Boston’s tourism board should pay Michelin to launch a guide in this city. Readers responded at length. Below, find answers ranging from “hell yes” to “hell no” and everything in between.
Have more thoughts on this? Keep the conversation going on Eater’s Facebook page.
Emphatically yes!!! It will raise awareness of the great restaurants in this city and, possibly, draw in more culinary talent in the future.
— Nicholas Perricone
Please bring Michelin to Boston. It will be very positive for the city moving forward as a global leader, and it is crucial to elevating the “perception” of the high-level food scene Boston has, and is improving upon, daily.
— Bill Harding
I vote yes. Having recently been in LA, our restaurant scene needs a boost. The prospect of being able to get a star or two will keep more talent in Boston and galvanize others to up their game. At the very least, given our location, Boston should have world-class seafood and this will help get us there. And growing a world-class restaurant scene will bring more tourism to a city that already has the history and cultural attractions.
— Peter Friedmann
Exactly how much are we paying and for what? If it’s for airfare, a place to stay for a week, and cab fare, I think that’s acceptable. If publishing costs are to be considered as well, that’s something else. I mean, if we’re covering publishing costs, how much of a demand is there for a Michelin Guide to begin with? If we pay for the publishing, do we get reimbursed if it sells well?
— Nat Pine
1. I agree: local dining is just fine.
2. There is more than enough trendiness right now.
3. Them “prominent chefs” who want MeetBoston to cough up for Michelin stars might be reminded that conventions don’t go near gourmet digs. And tourists don’t turn into regulars.
5. For me, no fish from tins, olive oil in coffee, Itameshi, charcuterie on butter boards, lobster mac and cheese, avocado margaritas, mood food, brain food, functional beverages, or anything that smacks of chaos cuisine.
Michelin: stick to tires. (I had some once. They’re not so great.)
— Kitty Kaufman
I think it would be highly worthwhile for Boston to pay to have a Michelin Guide. When I travel and am doing my planning on where to dine, I regularly use the Michelin Guide as one of my research tools. It is far from my only tool, but it is often a great starting point. I don’t see any downsides to this and only the upside of promoting Boston dining. There are some tremendous restaurants in Boston that deserve recognition. As someone too who is originally from New York, and dines around the world, I do not think Boston is the sleepy and boring restaurant scene that it is often perceived to be!
— Evan Gold
I agree that a Michelin Guide would be interesting and I am guilty of reading it, but it goes against the grain to have to pay Michelin to come here to review our restaurants. I think that takes the neutrality and unbiasedness out of reviews.
I didn’t know that’s how Michelin works and honestly, I don’t think we need them. I like hearing by word of mouth, or from websites like yours of a new restaurant or a good restaurant, and then I will go myself and judge.
I don’t think chefs need to have a Michelin star to be great and maybe some chefs need that recognition, but I think the best are great regardless of their star or lack thereof. I say good for MeetBoston for holding out and we’ve done pretty well so far without Michelin and I think we can continue to.
— Doris Kim
Absolutely yes! It’s only a contribution to an established guide that will give additional exposure to the food scene and promote the city and surrounding area. Having been in the tourism industry for some 40 years and having spent many of those years promoting Boston and New England in cooperation with Northwest Airlines (God bless them!) I am fully aware of budget constraints but this offer is too good to miss! I say grab the opportunity!
— David Bates
Heck expensive prices and clout. I just care about the food. You go to Brooklyn and it’s not the highly touted places that impress, it’s that there’s food everywhere. We can’t create that by paying for some guide to come. We create that by making it more affordable for people of all cultures to live here and prosper.
— Trevor Fox
I live in a divided household:
Me: YES!!! I think I agree with the chefs — it helps legitimize (whether we like it or not) the food scene and good money/investment in the restaurant scene can follow.
My husband: Would people really come to Boston for its food scene with a Michelin Guide? And what if we pay and restaurants don’t get the stars? Do some restaurants have to get a star, since we paid?
Isn’t the bigger problem you pay for it to begin with? That was a bummer to find out. But Boston doesn’t do itself any favors with the lack of alcohol licenses — that’s another blockade to a growth-minded restaurant culture (and another story for another day).
— Anamarie Rojas
Yes, I think New England should have a Michelin Guide. MeetBoston should pair up with the other New England states. There is a vibrant restaurant scene in Maine, as well as Rhode Island, and even the Berkshires. The region is small enough geographically for this to work.
— Laura Talmud

Boston, MA
Josh Kraft supports Boston sanctuary policy defended by Mayor Wu, his opponent, in DC

Boston mayoral candidate Josh Kraft, left, and incumbent Mayor Michelle Wu. Both are Democrats. (Tréa Lavery/MassLive)Tréa Lavery
As Boston Mayor Michelle Wu departed Capitol Hill on Wednesday, her challenger in this year’s mayoral race, Josh Kraft, said he supported the immigration policy that Wu had defended to congressional Republicans.
In an hours-long hearing, Wu maintained that Boston’s policy of limited cooperation with the federal government on civil immigration enforcement was both legal and beneficial for the city, helping immigrants feel comfortable interacting with local police without fear of deportation.
Kraft supports “Boston’s policy of handling immigrants,” his campaign said in a statement Wednesday night.
That included support for Boston’s Trust Act, the law that directs police to cooperate with Immigrations and Customs Enforcement officials on criminal matters, such as investigating drug or weapons trafficking or arresting violent offenders, but prohibits police involvement with civil immigration enforcement, such as holding someone at ICE’s request without a criminal warrant.
- Read more: 5 takeaways from Mayor Wu’s Congressional testimony on sanctuary cities

WASHINGTON, DC – MARCH 05: (L-R) Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson, Boston Mayor Michelle Wu and David J. Bier, Director of Immigration Studies at the Cato Institute, are sworn in during a House Oversight and Government Reform Committee hearing on sanctuary cities’ policies at the U.S. Capitol on March 05, 2025 in Washington, DC. The hearing comes as President Donald Trump looks to implement key elements of his immigration policy, while threatening to cut funding to cities that resist the administration’s immigration efforts. (Photo by Kayla Bartkowski/Getty Images)Getty Images
To some, it’s known as a sanctuary city policy.
The campaign pointed to Kraft’s statement last week in which he said he “strongly opposes” the mass deportation plan pitched by President Donald Trump and Tom Homan, his acting director of ICE. Kraft denounced Homan’s “inflammatory rhetoric about a city he does not know,” referring to the border chief’s repeated shots at Wu and pledge to “bring hell” to Boston by way of an immigration crackdown.
- Read more: Boston Mayor Wu parries GOP jabs in tense Capitol Hill hearing where theater ruled | John L. Micek
“It is outrageous to think about ICE officers raiding schools or places of worship to round up undocumented immigrants who are not engaged in criminal activity,” Kraft said.
“I know these people,” Kraft continued. “I’ve spent my life working with the immigrant community in and around Boston. I know their character and the contributions they make to the city of Boston. I also understand — and have great respect for — the important work that the Boston Police Department and other first responders do every day to keep Boston’s neighborhoods livable for all of our residents.”
Josh Kraft, son of New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft and former CEO of the Boys and Girls Clubs of Boston, speaks at a campaign launch event announcing his candidacy for mayor of Boston at Prince Hall in Dorchester, Tuesday, Feb. 4, 2025. (Tréa Lavery/MassLive)Tréa Lavery/MassLive
In an X post Tuesday, Kraft also said he supported Wu going to Washington, D.C., to defend Boston, but he questioned the use of up to $650,000 in taxpayer funds, as reported by the Boston Herald, spent on a “show trial hearing.”
- Read more: Watch: Boston Mayor Wu introduces baby daughter before Capitol Hill hearing
Wu was one of four Democratic mayors to appear Wednesday before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform. She was joined by New York City Mayor Eric Adams, Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson and Denver Mayor Mike Johnston, all of whom observe some form of sanctuary policy enshrined in local law.
The mayors have put “criminal illegal aliens back onto the streets” to commit violent crimes, U.S. Rep. James Comer, a Kentucky Republican and chair of the committee, insisted.
- Read more: Florida Republican vows to report Boston Mayor Wu to DOJ for criminal investigation
Wu and the other mayors pushed back on that and similar claims.
Asked by Comer if Boston is a sanctuary city, Wu replied: “Boston is a safe city.”
“A sanctuary city clause does not mean our city will ever be a safe haven for violent criminals,” Adams said.
Wu used her opening statement to the committee to detail Boston’s recent public safety success, including its lowest homicide rate in decades last year.
Boston is safe, she said, “because all of our residents trust that they can call 911 in the event of an emergency or to report a crime. This federal administration’s approach is undermining that trust.”
Boston, MA
Battenfeld: Michelle Wu and Boston could face legal repercussions after much-hyped hearing

The much-hyped hearing, Wu’s first time on the national stage, turned out not to be so much of a show but more of a legal grilling of the mayor and three other city mayors aimed at getting them to admit under oath they weren’t following federal immigration law.
Boston, MA
Boston Mayor Michelle Wu clashes with Rep. James Comer during

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