Scheduled for 7pm in Portugal, an hour later in Spain, the announcement of the restaurants distinguished in the Michelin Guide Spain and Portugal 2021 will be broadcast live from the Real Casa de Correos, in Porta do Sol, Madrid, through the galaguia.michelin.pt platform. The ceremony in virtual format is due to the restrictions imposed by the pandemic of covid-19, which also delayed in a few weeks the launch of the guide, normally launched in November, and which will arrive this Tuesday to newsstands. According to the Spanish news agency, Efe, which cites Michelin's source, in next year's edition there is a "reasonable" increase in restaurants distinguished with two stars ('exceptional cuisine, deserves the diversion') and a 'high' growth of a star ('high-level cuisine, it pays to stop'). In addition, a new distinction will be awarded, the green star, which awards restaurants for their sustainability. There will also be star losses, mostly due to closures, and "a few" by lower standards required by Michelin inspectors.

In the 2020 edition, Portugal has seven restaurants with two stars and 20 with one star. The loss of the star who owns the restaurant 'São Gabriel' (Almancil, Algarve), which closed its doors last November after being sold, is expected. In April, Gwendal Poullenec, international director of the Michelin Guide, published in 32 countries, said inspectors would have a "flexible and realistic" criterion in evaluating restaurants in the context of a pandemic, which has severely affected the restaurant sector. According to the official, the inspectors will be "flexible, sensible and realistic" and will offer their support to contribute to the recovery of restaurants.

Michelin's director of communications and brands, Mónica Rius, assured that chief inspector "José Vallés and his team of inspectors were able to secure the 2021 selection in circumstances as adverse as this year." "It was unprecedented fieldwork, with the sole goal of not missing our annual meeting with our readers, and of supporting a strategic sector so punished by the pandemic," he said. The galas for the launch of Guia España and Portugal have been held annually since 2009, when the 100th edition of the Iberian guide was launched, taking place in different cities, almost always in Spain. Lisbon hosted the ceremony in November 2018.