St. Petersburg has five restaurants in the MICHELIN Guide Florida. All five are MICHELIN Recommended. None has a star and none has a Bib Gourmand.
That is the 2026 selection, announced on 28 May 2026. Three of the five were also in the 2025 guide, the first year Pinellas County was eligible. Two are new this year.
| Restaurant | Where | In the guide since | What it is |
|---|---|---|---|
| Il Ritorno | Downtown, 449 Central Ave | 2025 | Modern Italian from chef and owner David Benstock, who grew up here |
| Fortu | Downtown, 97 Central Ave | 2025 | Pan-Asian steakhouse in the old Ponce de Leon Hotel |
| Sushi Sho Rexley | Downtown, 214 2nd St N | 2025 | A ten-seat omakase counter run by two brothers |
| Elliott Aster | Old Northeast, at The Vinoy | 2026 | Italian-inspired steakhouse with chef Lee Wolen |
| In Between Days | Grand Central, 2340 1st Ave S | 2026 | A sake bar and listening room in a 1925 bungalow |
What MICHELIN Recommended means in St. Pete
Recommended is the guide saying the food is good and worth a visit. It sits below a star and below a Bib Gourmand, which is the award for good food at a fair price.
You will see these five called "starred" in headlines. They are not. One local headline read "Two St. Pete stars" about the two new Recommended restaurants. The chef at Elliott Aster earned a star in Chicago, and the St. Pete restaurant is Recommended.
Why "Tampa Bay MICHELIN" lists get St. Pete wrong
News stories often count the whole region as one place. All four MICHELIN Stars in the area are across the bay in Tampa. So are all four Bib Gourmands and the Green Star.
A sixth Pinellas restaurant is in the guide too: The Tides Market in Safety Harbor. It is a real listing. Safety Harbor is north of the area this site covers, so it is not on this site.
Booking the smallest MICHELIN rooms
Sushi Sho Rexley has ten seats and books through Tock only. Its own site warns that it is not on Google Reserve. In Between Days counts seven tables and six bar stools. At Il Ritorno, the Chef's Bar serves eight to nine courses for $275 a person before drinks and tax.
Designations: MICHELIN Guide Florida 2026, as reported by St. Pete Catalyst (29 May 2026), Creative Loafing Tampa Bay, St. Pete Rising and Visit St. Pete-Clearwater. MICHELIN has not announced a date for the 2027 selection.