Evaluative Practices in the Culinary Field: A Case of Restaurant Rankings

This paper is concerned with evaluative practices within the culinary field. The focus is on the evaluative practices performed by two restaurant ranking systems, respectively the Michelin Red Guide system handled by the French tire manufacturer Michelin and the San Pellegrino ’World’s 50 Best Restaurant’ list organized by the English based Restaurant Magazine. Both ranking systems evaluate and rate restaurants (judging their food, service, physical setting and so forth) but in different ways through different practices and means, and with somewhat different results.