TV cook Jamie Oliver has won several entertainment-related awards, including an Emmy award and two British Academy Film Awards (BAFTAs). But, has he won any food-related awards? Specifically, has Jamie Oliver ever earned a coveted Michelin Star?
Jamie Oliver Michelin Stars
Jamie Oliver may be one of the most popular TV cooks in the United States, if not the world. Even though he is not a trained chef, he is compared, sometimes favorably, with award-winning chefs like Gordon Ramsey. But Jamie Oliver has never earned a single Michelin Star.
Technically, nobody actually wins a Michelin Star as they are awarded to restaurants rather than individuals. So, the question is whether a restaurant owned by Jamie Oliver has earned a star. And even more specifically, has a restaurant in which Jamie Oliver serves as executive chef ever earned a Michelin?
Jamie Oliver’s Restaurants
Jamie Oliver, at one time, was the head of a large restaurant group that controlled 37 restaurants. The most critically acclaimed restaurant he ever owned was Fifteen.
He also owned two steakhouses called Barbecoa, several Italian restaurants, and more. In 2018, 12 of these closed their doors, and then, in 2019, the restaurant group completely collapsed after 22 more of the remaining 25 closed. He still owns successful restaurants in other countries besides the UK.
Jamie Oliver Restaurant Reviews
In the UK, Oliver’s restaurants always earned mixed reviews from customers, with many highly disappointed guests leaving one-star reviews after a ‘disgusting’ experience.
His restaurants were also often scorned by food critics. While the Michelin Guide, however, doesn’t report on restaurants that don’t earn stars, not one of Jamie Oliver’s restaurants has ever earned one.
Delusions of Grandeur
The best way to describe Jamie Oliver’s restaurants is with the phrase ‘delusions of grandeur.’ This untrained home cook simply cooks with pretensions that don’t match his skill or training, and it shows in the taste and quality of the food his restaurants serve.
One of the worst reviews was from The Sunday Times food critic Marina O’Loughlin, who wrote a review after visiting the Stratford branch of Jamie’s Italian in 2018.
She described the tagliatelle with truffles as “appalling” with phrases like “a honking salty swamp of a sauce” like “mouse poos in soup.”
She complained that the squid-ink mezzalune pasta was filled with something only vaguely fishy and that the sauce was oily and split.
The special, Salina Chicken was “dismal” with a flabby skin “its base incinerated.” 1O’Loughlin, Marina. “Restaurant Review: Marina O’loughlin on Jamie’s Italian, Westfield Stratford.” The Sunday Times Magazine | The Sunday Times, The Sunday Times, 15 Sept. 2018, https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/restaurant-review-marina-oloughlin-on-jamies-italian-westfield-stratford-f2nzkfbtl.
Must Focus On Quality and Consistency Instead of Quantity
With reviews like this, and given the standards of the Michelin Guide, it is not surprising that Oliver never earned a star and it is not likely that he ever will unless he stops focusing on quantity and begins to focus on quality while featuring dishes that his staff can pull off successfully and consistently.
The ability to conceptualize tasty and appealing dishes would be a plus.
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