S02E02: Nunc Est Bibendum!

Zosobi Boo-Bury

and

lavish

Jun 04, 2024

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SAT TIRE

THE MICHELIN GALAXY

⭐ This week I was treated for the first time ever to a Michelin-rated restaurant (and vinyl bar) owned by arguably one of the best chefs in the world (who was kind enough to come by the table and say hello). Between throwing Van Halen’s Van Halen on the record player and savoring tasty bourbon cocktails, I realized I knew nothing about Michelin stars, or why a tire manufacturing company holds so much power over global fine dining.

⭐ Michelin 1 - Intro

Taking a step back… In 1886, 33-year-old André Michelin abandoned his career as a successful Parisian engineer to take over his grandfather's failing agricultural goods and farm equipment business. Michelin's grandfather had started the company that sold farm equipment and an odd assortment of vulcanized rubber products, such as belts, valves and pipes. As soon as André took the helm of the company, he recruited his younger brother Édouard to join him at the company. Édouard was named the company's managing director. Neither brother really knew much of what they were doing.

In 1889, a cyclist familiar with the Michelin Company approached them with a flat tire seeking assistance. Getting a flat tire frequently meant cyclists were left stranded for hours. In the late 1880s, cycling was becoming a popular form of transportation and hobby due in large part to John Dunlop's 1888 patent for the inflatable bicycle tire. Before Dunlop's invention, bicycle tire were made out of solid rubber. The solid rubber tire tended to provide little traction and made for a difficult and uncomfortable ride. Dunlop allegedly developed these tires to protect his young son from getting headaches riding bumpy roads om his bike.

After his experience with the cyclist, Édouard Michelin took a great interest in inflatable tires. The Michelins recognized that there would be a great demand for pneumatic tires if only there was a way to more quickly make repairs. They reasoned that first the wheel must become detachable. Édouard conducted a series of experiments and developed a number of prototypes. In 1891, he was granted a patent for a detachable tire. From then on the Michelin brothers specialized in building tires for bikes and then another new invention gaining popularity: automobiles.

🛞 Bibendum (French pronunciation: [bibɛ̃dɔm]), commonly referred to in English as the Michelin Man or Michelin Tire Man, is the official mascot of the Michelin tire company. A humanoid figure consisting of stacked white tires, it was introduced at the Lyon Exhibition of 1894 where the Michelin brothers had a stand. He is one of the world's oldest trademarks still in active use. The slogan Nunc est bibendum ("Now is the time to drink") is taken from Horace's Odes (book I, ode xxxvii, line 1).

The (arguably) oldest slogan associated with automobiles is “Now is the time to drink!”

⭐ Michelin 2 - Freedom

🚗 In 1900, there were fewer than 3,000 cars on the roads of France. To increase the demand for cars and, accordingly, car tires, Édouard and André Michelin published a guide for French motorists, la Guide Michelin (Michelin Guide). Nearly 35,000 copies of this first, free edition of the guide were distributed. It provided information to motorists, such as maps, tire repair and replacement instructions, car mechanics listings, hotels, and gas stations throughout France. This guide was tailored to elites, because only the rich could afford to drive, so the whole ordeal was very fancy to begin with.

In 1904, the brothers published a guide for Belgium similar to the Michelin Guide. Michelin subsequently introduced guides for Algeria and Tunisia (1907); the Alps and the Rhine (northern Italy, Switzerland, Bavaria, and the Netherlands) (1908); Germany, Spain, and Portugal (1910); the British Isles (1911); and "The Countries of the Sun" (Les Pays du Soleil) (Northern Africa, Southern Italy and Corsica) (1911). In 1909, an English-language version of the guide to France was published.

🌭 During World War I, publication of the guide was suspended. After the war, revised editions of the guide continued to be given away until 1920. It is said that André Michelin, whilst visiting a tire merchant, noticed copies of the guide being used to prop up a workbench. Based on the principle that "man only truly respects what he pays for", Michelin decided to charge a price for the guide, which was about 7.50 francs or US$ 2.15 in 1922.They also made several changes, notably listing restaurants by specific categories, adding hotel listings (initially only for Paris), and removing advertisements in the guide. Recognizing the growing popularity of the restaurant section of the guide, the brothers recruited a team of inspectors, who were always anonymous, to visit and review restaurants.

A Car Tire Company Advertises on a Horse Drawn Cart…

⭐ Michelin 3 - Anonymous

Following the usage of the Murray's and Baedeker guides, the guide began to award stars for fine dining establishments in 1926. Initially, there was only a single star awarded. Then, in 1931, the hierarchy of zero, one, two, and three stars was introduced. Finally, in 1936, the criteria for the rankings were published:

: "A very good restaurant in its category" (Une très bonne table dans sa catégorie)
: "Excellent cooking, worth a detour" (Table excellente, mérite un détour)
: "Exceptional cuisine, worth a special journey" (Une des meilleures tables, vaut le voyage).

In 1931 the cover of the guide was changed from blue to red and has remained so in all subsequent editions.

🪖 In spring 1944, while the formidable fleet which would land in Normandy was being organized in England, the Allied Forces feared that their progression would be delayed in French cities where all signage had been taken down or destroyed. After painstaking research and with the go-ahead of the Michelin Paris management, it was decided that the 1939 edition of the Guide – the last on record – would be reprinted. The complete edition, with its hundreds of detailed, up-to-date city maps, was printed in Washington, DC, and distributed amongst the officers. The only difference from the 1939 French edition was the mention on the cover stating ‘For official use only’. So it was that on D-Day the troops which would liberate Bayeux, Cherbourg, Caen, St. Lo and France itself landed with the Michelin Guide in hand. Most of these D-Day landing guides have been lost or destroyed in the bombings, others were taken back to the USA by soldiers returning home; there are very few known originals left in Europe. They differ from the initial 1939 edition in that the cover is less rigid, the colour is a lighter, pinkish red, the tyre insert is lacking and there are some comments in English on the cover.

The France Michelin Guide was on the shelves in spring of 1945. The required paper had been stockpiled, allowing for sales to begin as early as 16 May: one week after V-E Day. A small notice printed on the cover stated, ‘This edition, prepared during the war, can not be as complete and precise as our pre-war publications. Nevertheless, it should be useful.’

In the early post-war years, the lingering effects of wartime shortages led Michelin to impose an upper limit of two stars; by 1950 the French edition listed 38 establishments judged to meet this standard. The first Michelin Guide for Italy was published in 1956. It awarded no stars in the first edition. In 1974, the first guide to Britain since 1931 was published. Twenty-five stars were awarded.

In 2005, Michelin published its first American guide, covering 500 restaurants in the five boroughs of New York City and 50 hotels in Manhattan. In 2007, a Tokyo Michelin Guide was launched. In the same year, the guide introduced a magazine, Étoile. In 2008, a Hong Kong and Macau volume was added.As of 2013, the guide is published in 14 editions covering 23 countries.

Automobiles and food have always been luxury items.

⭐ Michelin 4 - V4V

THE SOMBER AND THE SOLEMN

A MYSTERIOUS MAN MYTH AND MAGIC

Play or religion?

Zoso's Corner

Discussion about this post

Zoso's Corner

S02E02: Nunc Est Bibendum!

Tonight’s Tarot: THE WHEEL

Freaks of Hazard:

SAT TIRE

THE MICHELIN GALAXY

THE SOMBER AND THE SOLEMN

A MYSTERIOUS MAN MYTH AND MAGIC

OPENER

INTERMISSION

CLOSER

PRESHOW

TAKE THESE, IT’S DANGEROUS TO GO ALONE!

Discussion about this post