Two stars, one goal: Here's what it takes to get both a red and a green Michelin star
Tasting dinner at the Michelin-starred restaurant Štangl
When you say Michelin, most of us immediately think of the classic red star, awarded for exceptional food. Restaurants are rated and graded according to five criteria: quality of ingredients, harmony of flavours, mastery of cooking techniques, the chef's signature and the consistency of the menu over time. In 2020, the commissioners introduced a brand new award - the Green Star. This highlights businesses that are at the absolute cutting edge of sustainability, environmentalism and ethical attitudes towards nature and employees.
While Michelin hands out thousands of red stars every year, to hold both awards at the same time is extremely rare. To give you an idea, in 2026 the Michelin Guide gave out stars to 3,783 restaurants - yet only around 300 can boast a green star with a classic red (one, two or three). Three red stars, plus the green one, is a microscopic club of roughly thirty restaurants in the world.
The end of waste and gardeners in rondons
Historically, fine dining has often been associated with the importation of exotic ingredients and an obsession of the perfect shape on the plate. The ingredients were trimmed to the millimetre, and what was left simply landed into the trash, commonly creating piles of waste. Today, Michelin values a completely different approach. It shows that the definition of haute cuisine is changing, because true mastery is not about having a chef import a premium cut of meat from the other side of the world. Instead, it's taking a local ingredient, processing it from root to leaf and wowing you with its flavour.
The proof is in the pudding. Take Mauro Colagreco, chef of the legendary French restaurant Mirazur (3 red stars + green), who has built extensive permaculture gardens. "I like to think of myself as a gardener in a rondon," declares Colagreco. "We used to say we had a restaurant with a garden. Today it's the other way around - we're a huge garden that has its own restaurant. Cooking has allowed me to reconnect with the land, and it's working with nature that gives my dishes their rhythm."
British farm-to-table pioneer Simon Rogan of the restaurant L'Enclume (also 3 red stars + green), sees things the same way. "Chefs can contribute to changing our food system for the better, with every purchase," Rogan explains the philosophy of running an entire restaurant which is dictated primarily by the farm itself. "Working with locally sourced ingredients means that everything I create reflects the soil and climate of that particular place."
More highlights from red and green restaurants:
From old bottles to new plates: Spanish legend El Celler de Can Roc (3 red stars + green) has taken the zero-waste approach even further with a project called Roca Recicla. In their own workshop, they are transforming empty wine bottles into glasses and plates on which they serve food, and turning polystyrene packaging into design stools.
A farm on the roof of a skyscraper: Hong Kong's Roganic farm (1 red + green star) shows that sustainability doesn't have to be limited to rural farms. In the middle of a concrete jungle, the team grows microgreens and edible flowers on the roof garden of a skyscraper just across the street from the restaurant.
Respect for the land and energy: The French Laundry in California (3 red stars + green) is now partially powered by a massive solar system. In the famous Argentinian establishment, Don Julio (1 red star + green), they also profess regenerative agriculture. In the words of owner Pablo Rivero, "The ingredients come from the soil and our dishes are intrinsically linked to this fact. It is absolutely essential to find a responsible way of working that respects this relationship."
Seasonality and fermentation in Karlin
In the Czech Republic, the green star has so far been "donned" by four restaurants - Leaf, Sůl a Řepa, Dvůr Perlová voda and experiential restaurant Štangl, where the combination of red and green stars is an exemplary example of functional sustainability. The team led by chef Martin Štangl builds their dishes on wild herbs, noble molds and close relationships with farmers.
"What is growing and what is fresh determines what appears on the plate. You could say that nature itself writes the menu here," explains Martin Štangl.
The three- or five-course menu is thus full of creative yet consistently local combinations. March's menu is a case in point. Starting with a grilled bread pancake with buckwheat butter, guests continue with vegetables dishes such as celery confit in butter with smoked rye sauce, hazelnuts and yeast. The chefs aren't afraid of unusual combinations either - take poached lamb with kaffir lime leaves, or a dessert in which classic potato doughnuts are complemented by fudge mousse, nougat ice cream and locally-produced miso.
What exactly does it take to run green star establishment in practice?
- Maximum locality: 95% of raw materials come to Štangl from local suppliers and organic farmers. But they go even further - for the launch of the restaurant they had 600 pigeons bred, and are currently growing a specific variety of kale called kalec. In addition, a hydroponic system located right in the kitchen takes care of the fresh herbs.
- Minimal waste and energy savings: The aim is to process every raw material, down to the last leaf. To help the chefs achieve this, pickling and fermentation play a big role, for which they have special refrigerators. The restaurant cooks exclusively on precision induction stoves to avoid wasting energy, arrange to use primarily returnable packaging with their suppliers, and are also actively testing composters to return bio-waste to the farmers' fields.
- Details that make sense: Sustainability is written into the smallest things here. Soiled paper menus don't end up in the bin - they're made into coasters for non-alcoholic pairing glasses. In addition, the paper is pressed with lemon balm seeds, so the guest can take the coaster home, plant it and grow their own herbs.
- Sustainability for people too: The green star also takes into account work ethics and a healthy work-life balance. That's why the restaurant is only open five days a week, and the staff work exclusively afternoon shifts, with the exception of Saturday breakfast.
Green stars deserve more attention, says chef Martin Štangl
Winning both awards is not a finish line for Martin Štangl and his team, but rather a huge driving force. "The star gave the whole team confidence, and that's exactly what we needed. It also gave me more courage to be uncompromising in some things. And I want more from the team than before. The star is a motivation to improve, to go one step further," the chef emphasises.
And how does he feel about the exclusive combination of two seemingly different Michelin worlds? "I appreciate the red star as much as the green star, which shines a light on our approach, but also opens up the topic of sustainability and collaboration with farmers. I think that it deserves much more attention. There are not many restaurants in the world that have been awarded both a red star and a green star at the same time, and I am glad that we can send a message to the industry about how important and how real it is to work sustainably, and not just at the fine dining level."
The combination of a red and a green star sends a clear message to guests and to the entire gastronomic world: you are in for a tastefully and technically unforgettable experience, but you can be 100% sure that it was not created at the expense of the planet.
Sources: Michelin, Unesco, Preneur World, Roca Recicla, Roganic Hong Kong
