I don’t think that’s factual - Michelin inspectors were here over the summer.
Also, when I inquired at LSL how frequently their menu changed, I was told “It’s not changing right now, as Michelin requires a stable menu” (I paraphrase for brevity; but essentially they were certainly ‘expecting’ a visit - same ownership as the only 2 star in Toronto).
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It is a bit odd that they are not listed in there at all. Langdon Hall didn’t get a star but they were listed in the guide. So inspectors must have gone and deemed them “not worthy”. LSL , on the other hand, could be either not inspected or inspected and not even listed?
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I think some of the inspectors are influenced by marketers from the restaurants themselves, Reddit, HungryOnion or BlogTO.
That explains some of the meh- restaurant or over-hyped inclusions last year.
I am glad it looks like the list has been adjusted this year to remove some meh.
I haven’t been to SumiLicious.
That’s not one of the places I’m talking about.
I don’t think Cherry St BBQ is all that. The sides and cobbler are weak. I’m not sure why it’s mentioned as a bib.
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Agree on cherry Street BBQ wasn’t impressed at all (though I had recently been to Austin and they are synonymous with BBQ with Franklin’s having people camping out!)
They had a few odd picks before as when SF Bay area list was released I was surprised by the inclusion of a few restaurants (starred!)
I wonder if the criteria haa been adjusted with times
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I think it’s a bit of an attempt to provide something for everyone.
On a list of 22 Bibs, only about 5 are places I have visited more than twice.
What are your thoughts on Indian Street Food on Bayview? I don’t remember anyone mentioning it in this thread.
Recommended Pakistani/Indian/Desi food spots in Toronto GTA
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Michelin is like any other list, I’m going to agree with some picks and disagree with others. I am more likely to agree with Michelin than say Yelp, so I take their recs more seriously. And there are definitely places they list that I think are “meh” - agree about Cherry St. BBQ. I last went to Indian Street Food before the pandemic, but thought it was pretty good, but not as good as Pukka, which also does Indian with an upscale twist.
Regarding LSL, even if it was open when the inspectors were here, maybe they still want to see a longer track record before they give an official recommendation?
Unlike Phoenikia, we had a very enjoyable meal at Gia, fitting with a rec but definitely nothing more. Seeing Alobar lose its star made sense as it has been fine, but not in 1-star territory. I still think George should get a star, given the other restaurants that have one.
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There are many Michelin restaurants who have constantly changing menus, e.g. French Laundry is changing its menu every day
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The Michelin guide actually stated ’ Value for money ’ as one of the major factors being considered in their evaluation criteria.
Maybe the inspectors did come and found LSL ‘over-priced’ for the taste, technical skill and flair of the food they offer?! High lighting the names of a couple of hands-off, behind the scenes, Michelin star chefs partner might not be enough to work magic in the eyes of those seasoned Michelin inspectors?!..especially if quality of ‘Cooking’ is specifically what they are looking for?
Nowadays, with the help of social media, any amateur home cook can open up a can of caviar, place a scoop or two on top of some chopped up raw Wagyu beef inside a mold and garnished with micro-greens…etc. The meat, easily bought from say FAMU in J-Town and the seasoning of them from some youtube videos?! No big deal …impressive looking and instagrammable! But that’s NOT really cooking but gimmicky visual culinary art work?
…and Yes! I totally agree with you Doc! Chef Loseto and GEORGE should deserve a star…considering Del Alfonso with their ho-hum tasting, gimmicky plated food gets a star, two years in a row?!
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Not sure how long is “long” … LOL … but Kappo Sato opened in Nov-Dec 2022, got Michelin “recommended” I remember in the summer of 2023 … and then Michelin starred in the Sep 2023 ceremony …
Unless there are Michelin inspector(s) among us … we can only speculate if they have or have not been, what their experiences were like when they dined at the restaurants (listed or not listed) and what made them score what they scored …
Regardless, the guide is still very “entertaining” for me … LOL
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Let your friend hear it. Its laughable that no Toronto area Cantonese restaurants got the nod, since Toronto has probably the highest quality Cantonese food outside Hong Kong / China.
But this phenomenon isn’t just in Toronto. It seems like restaurants that cater to immigrants and make zero attempt to market to the Michelin type rarely get recognized. But the odds increased substantially if they do some gimmicky marketing.
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2 of the Chinese restaurants that have the nod in Toronto have a white guy chef, Sunnys and MIMI.
4 restaurants listed in the Guide, at any level, in Toronto proper (In the City of Toronto, rather than the Greater Toronto Area) are serving Chinese food.
Mother’s Dumplings is not that great, even for Chinatown, but it’s always managed to have a successful PR department. 
Many other cuisines that are done well in Toronto are completely ignored or underrepresented, but this is partly because of the love people in Toronto have for Contemporary Continental, French, Chinese, Italian, and Japanese food, and in a few instances Spanish and Thai, above all the rest.
Have only tried Sunny and can confirm that I would not consider it decent Cantonese food
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I haven’t tried Sunnys or MIMI yet, because Sunnys and MIMI will not accomodate immune-compromised people by offering their food to go. When I have contacted Sunnys and MIMI, their communications person has been tone deaf, and suggests that I join them indoors instead.
AloBar, Alo, Bar Raval, Bar Isabel, Enoteca Sociale, Viaggio and the majority of other Toronto establishments mentioned by Michelin that I have contacted will accommodate patrons who cannot dine indoors.
Casa Paco cannot accommodate. They wrote a nice email to let me know.
It is odd that they can’t accommodate. Not all dishes will travel well but surely some do?
I do wonder how Mimi is doing now that Mott 32 is open. Seems to target the same high spending non-Chinese diners and Mott32 should be much more authentic?
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It will be interesting to see how MIMI does. MIMI is lucky that its location in the Annex, near the Yorkville Hotels, is not closer to the Shangri La. I think that should help MIMI’s bottom line.
Funny in a way, that Joso, Scaramouche and Chiado are ignored by Michelin. They are all still good at what they do.
I didn’t realize how expensive Mott32 was going to be, until recently. It’s out of reach for most people, even those who dine at Toronto’s upscale restaurants frequently.
I won’t wade into an authenticity debate! 
Don’t think Mimi nor Sunnys have advertised themselves as Cantonese food though …
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Maybe I’ll step in and try to interpret your exchanges in my way?
Both menus of Sunny’s and Mimi’s have almost a 50/50 split in offering a mix of Sichuan dishes and Hong Kong /Guangdong ( Cantonese ) dishes. ( spicy vs non-spicy )
Based on my previous isolated exploratory two visits, I must say their preparation of Cantonese dishes like the Steamed Sea Bass with black beans, Stirred fry rice roll with 3 types of soya sauce and the Stirred fry Morning Glory with dried shrimp…etc are pseudo-authentic and fairly mundane, middle-of-the-road, stuff.
Any respectable restaurants in Richmond Hill and Markham can easily replicate or better these types of quality and cooking. In fact, even I can do an equal or better version of the Steamed Sea Bass at home!! The secret is making a good quality soya sauce seasoning and a sizzling oil finish!!
If Michelin deemed both Mimi and Sunny’s 'Chinese Food ’ worthy of inclusion into the guide based on taste and quality of their offerings, then IMHO, so should at least half of the Chinese restaurants north of the 401!
I’m sure, if a cook-off is to be held amongst Mimi and Sunny’s with some of their GTA competitors like ’ Wei’s Kitchen ', Jiang Nan hand made DS, Yan’s kitchen, StarChiva Cuisine, So-Good…etc, for sure the latter GTA ones will kick their ass!!!
My 2 cents!
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Didn’t say they were but the dishes I ordered are Cantonese
I’m curious for those who have tried Sunny/Mimi, how do they compare to DaiLo? DaiLo has a smaller menu than Chinese restaurants and found some of their modernized dishes really good. DaiLo is also not in the guide.
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Sunny and Mimi both try their best to provide and replicate their own interpretation of so-called ‘authentic’ Chinese dishes ( with captioned narratives of composition and ingredients etc ) listed on the menu…be they Sichuan, Shanghainese, Guangdong or Hong Kong…and did an overall passable job.
Dailo’s food is more playful and fusion.
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