These Are the Most Affordable Cities for Dining at Michelin-Starred Restaurants

For some travellers, one of the essential ways to experience a foreign city is through its best restaurants. Most rely on famous guidebooks to know the world’s best dining spots — like the Michelin Guide, for instance. However, the usual catch about these is that they often cost a lot of money at around US$100 per person. But did you know that there are also affordable cities for dining at a Michelin-starred restaurant? 

This is all thanks to a recent study from Chef’s Pencil, a platform for culinary resources. Here, they analysed 450 restaurants worldwide with two and three Michelin stars and gathered the average prices of these restaurants’ tasting menus. 

Through this, they were able to identify which cities have the least expensive Michelin-rated meals. Spoiler alert: Four of the top ten cities are from Asia! 

Most affordable cities for dining at top-rated Michelin restaurants

Here is the full list of cities, along with the average tasting menu prices of its Michelin-starred restaurants. 

1. Bangkok: US$173 
2. Lyon: US$203
3. Seoul: US$213
4. Rotterdam: US$216
5. Barcelona: US$224
6. Vienna: US$225
7. Madrid: US$228
8. Taipei: US$232
9. Hamburg: US$240
10. Macao: US$248

Bangkok lands the top spot, given that the tasting menu at a two-starred Michelin restaurant there costs only around ฿5,677 Thai Baht (or roughly U$173). Although, you can actually dine at such top restaurants there for as low as U$105! Another Asian city on the list is Seoul, home to seven two-starred Michelin restaurants and two three-starred restaurants, according to Chef’s Pencil. 

As for Europe, the French city of Lyon takes second place. Not only is it the second-largest city in France, but it’s also considered the Gastronomic Capital of the World! And the best part? The average full tasting menu price is at €172 (or US$203) — half of what you’d normally have to shell out in other cities like Paris and Copenhagen. 

Most expensive cities for a Michelin-starred meal

Thinking of going all out on your next foodie trip? The same study also rounded up the least affordable cities for dining at a Michelin-starred restaurant!

1. Copenhagen: $448
2. Shanghai: $406
3. Kyoto: $401
4. Singapore: $364
5. Paris: $358
6. Stockholm: $335
7. Hong Kong: $324
8. Amsterdam: $320
9. New York: $309
10. Milan: $309

Also read: These Are the World’s Best Cities for Food & Drinks in 2021, According to Survey

Now you know which cities with top Michelin restaurants you should visit next, depending on your budget! Either way, we’re definitely all for the full foodie experience. 

On a different note, here are the world’s least stressful cities, as well as the most liveable spots. 

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