Chef loses legal battle over lost Michelin star

On Tuesday, a French chef who said he had contemplated suicide after the prestigious Michelin guide removed one of his restaurant's stars lost a legal attempt to force the guide's inspectors to justify their decision, a lawyer for Michelin said.

Marc Veyrat, 69, took the guide to Court earlier in 2019, demanding that it explain why it had stripped him of one of his 3 stars a year after awarding it. 

He had said that the only explanation he was given was that he had used English cheddar in a souffle, instead of traditional French cheese - an accusation he said was false.

But a court in Nanterre, on the outskirts of Paris, rejected his request, according to Richard Malka, the lawyer representing the Michelin guide.

Malka told Reuters that "This decision enshrines the freedom to criticize & enshrines the fact that his grievances were imaginary & unfounded".

An Advocate for Veyrat couldn't immediately be reached.

Veyrat, well known in France for his trademark Fedora hat, previously said that since he lost the star he had struggled to sleep, & his partner had had to hide his hunting rifles, fearing that he might try to harm himself.

In July 2019, in an interview with French media outlet Le Point Veyrat said, "Can you imagine the sense of shame I feel, I am the first chef in history to have won a star & lost it the next year".

"Every morning I wake up with that in my head. I'm at the end of my tether, I struggle to sleep, I hardly eat any more ... I'm on medication. I've had dark thoughts."
In his court case, the chef asked the Michelin guide to prove its inspectors had gone to his restaurant & show they were qualified to pass judgment.

The guide said it could not comply because to do so would mean revealing its inspectors' identity, & they would therefore no longer be able to inspect restaurants incognito.

The Michelin guide, which is published every year, is the global bible of food-lovers & a ranking can make or break an ambitious restaurant. Three stars from the guide, the highest rating awarded, is the ultimate prize for a chef.

But one French chef decided the stress of keeping a Michelin rating was too much. In Sept 2017, three-starred chef Sebastien Bras bowed out of the Michelin guide, saying he wished to continue his passion "with a free spirit & without stress".

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