It was raining Michelin stars at the award ceremony for the Michelin Guide Switzerland 2022 held in Lausanne, with an unprecedented 36 new Michelin-starred restaurants – including one new three-star, joining this year's guide.
“The 2022 restaurant selection is an absolute record,” said Gwendal Poullennec of the historic occasion. Thirty new one-star restaurants were announced; it was also an exceptional year for two-star achievements, with five new restaurants making the ranking, and a brand new three Michelin-starred restaurant joining the highest ranking.
Sven Wassmer from gourmet restaurant Memories, located within the Grand Resort Bad Ragaz, wiped the tears from his eyes as he was last on stage to be awarded three Michelin stars. He also accepted a Green star for his restaurant, which celebrates the Swiss Alpine region. He thanked his family and said: "What I'm doing with my team, day in, day out, is pure passion."
Memories joined existing three-star restaurants, Cheval Blanc by Peter Knogl in Basel (BS ), the Restaurant de l'Hôtel de Ville in Crissier (VD), and Schloss Schauenstein in Fürstenau (GR).
Among the new two-star rankings, seasonal sister restaurants La Brezza – operating in Arosa in winter, and in Ascona in summer - managed a double victory. The news was broken twice to an elated Marco Campanella, who was present at the labour ward awaiting the birth of his child. Skin’s - the restaurant, in Lenzburg (AG), was a new entry, straight into the guide with two stars.
In addition, Roots in Basel (BS) with chef Pascal Steffen received two stars, as did IGNIV Zürich by Andreas Caminada, with chef Daniel Zeindlhofer accepting the accolade for the restaurant's “fine dining sharing experience”. For front of house, Ines Triebenbacher, also at IGNIV Zurich, won the Michelin Service Award, presented by Pernod Ricard.
Among the thirty-strong throng of chefs awarded one star on stage, was young female chef Zineb Hattab, chef and owner of the contemporary vegan restaurant Kle in Zurich.
Accepting her award, she said: "I think it puts a spotlight on our values and our goals; yes I think it’s important; I think vegan food was never considered to be at the level of regular or animal products. So I do appreciate the fact we can be considered one-to-one, the same, because we put in a lot of work and we work with amazing producers... But in the end, it’s the team behind that makes it happen."
See the full list of new stars below.
