Predictions: Michelin Guide Nordic 2026 Who Will Get Stars in Scandinavia?

The new edition of the Michelin Guide Nordic Countries 2026 will be released on Monday, June 1st, 2026. Michelin stars and special awards will be handed out to the top restaurants in Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Iceland, Finland, and the Faroe Islands. Currently, there are a total of 263 restaurants featured in the Nordic Michelin Guide, with 37 starred restaurants in Denmark, 22 starred restaurants in Sweden, 20 starred restaurants in Norway, 7 starred restaurants in Finland, and 3 starred restaurants in Iceland. This year’s Michelin Guide ceremony will take place in Copenhagen, Denmark, where Gwendal Poullennec, the International Director of the Michelin Guide, will present the new Nordic star restaurants in a ceremony at Tivoli Gardens. The event will also be live-streamed on Michelin’s YouTube channel beginning at 18:00 local time.

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Predictions: Michelin Guide Nordic Countries 2026

It’s become an annual tradition for us to predict which restaurants will receive Michelin stars in the Michelin Guide Nordic Countries. (See our 2025 predictions here.) So, who do we think will get stars this year? Keep reading to see our 2026 Michelin predictions.

Denmark

Total listings: 101
Bib Gourmand: 20
Total stars: 37 restaurants, 49 stars
⭐⭐⭐ 2
⭐⭐ 8
⭐ 27

The awards ceremony will be held in Copenhagen this year, and the city is abuzz wondering which new restaurants in Denmark’s capital could get stars. Two of our favorite new openings last year were Akmē and Esse, and we’d love to see both restaurants get stars. Akmē is the sibling restaurant to Michelin-starred Sushi Anaba, from chefs Emil Hassan Lyngbæk and Valdemar Junge Norvang. The menu is a seasonal omakase with Japanese influences, featuring fun twists on classic French sauces and techniques. The food is refreshing and totally unique, unlike any other restaurant in town – and absolutely worthy of a star.

Esse is the new restaurant from chef Matt Orlando, best known for creating Amass, which was widely regarded as one of the world’s most sustainable restaurants. Esse is the continuation of the Amass legacy, with a delicious and innovative tasting menu rooted in zero-waste philosophy, local ingredients, and creative reuse. While Amass never received a Michelin star, we believe Esse could. Matt Orlando’s new restaurant is more refined, more focused, and more delicious than ever.

Another restaurant we’re hearing star-studded rumors about is Lille Mølle. Chef Christoffer Sørensen (formerly of Studio and Dragsholm Slot) previously won the Michelin Young Chef award, so it seems like definite star potential. We are also crossing our fingers for Magny, the new restaurant from chef Jonas Mikkelsen, who previously earned a star at restaurant Frederiksminde in the Danish countryside, and held it for nine years. If he gets it, it would be the fastest Michelin star ever in the region, receiving the award just 40 days after opening.

Chef Alexander Baert and restaurant manager Mattia Spedicato (both former Geranium alumni) recently took the reins at French fine dining restaurant Marchal, which has held a Michelin star since 2014. Could these two lead Marchal to a second Michelin star?

Restaurant Alouette left its Amager nest behind and built a new home next to Kongens Have, which opened in the summer of 2024. The experience now is more elevated than ever – the journey begins with a walk through their secret garden and ends with a cocktail in the lounge. In the new venue, Alouette has fully embraced the fine dining format, with smaller courses and a much longer tasting menu. Most importantly, the flavors have only intensified – and each new menu has been stronger than the last. In fact, Alouette served us the best dish we ate last year, topping our Best Dishes of 2025 list with a spectacular serving of pumpkin and caviar. Seven years after earning its first star, it’s clear that another is deserved – Alouette is our favorite restaurant in Copenhagen.

We have no doubt that restaurant Alchemist will one day join the prestigious three-star league, and we hope that this is finally their year. Alchemist was added to the Michelin Guide for the first time (with two stars) in 2020, and usually Michelin allows a few years between an upgrade from two to three stars. Noma, for example, had to work a full thirteen years before it got its third. We can attest that six years after entering the guide, chef Rasmus Munk’s food is tastier and more creative than ever, and, in our opinion, completely worthy of Michelin’s top ranking. Alchemist is one of the best restaurants in the world.

And that’s not the only three-star candidate we predict in Copenhagen. Two of our favorite restaurants, Kadeau and Koan, are clearly contenders for Michelin’s highest accolade. The guide has been notoriously stingy with handing out stars in the past, but if these restaurants were located in any other region we think they would be easily awarded. We can’t wait for the day Michelin gives these restaurants their roses – and we hope that day is next Monday, June 1st.

Outside the capital, we’re hearing rumors that Bach & Nurup is a strong Michelin star candidate. Could Aalborg gain another star? In Odense, we’re hearing Michelin buzz about Madeleine, the new restaurant from Yves Le Lay (formerly of À Terre in Copenhagen) and Per Hallundbæk (formerly of Falsled Kro). In Vejle, one-Michelin-starred restaurant Lyst has been operating at a two-Michelin-star level since it opened. We think this is certainly a spectacular restaurant worth making a detour for – does Michelin agree?

Rumor has it that Ræst in Tórshavn has been invited to this year’s ceremony. Could chef Sebastian Jiménez earn the Faroe Islands another star this year?

Norway

Total listings: 48
Bib Gourmand: 4
Total stars: 20 restaurants, 25 stars
⭐⭐⭐ 2
⭐⭐ 1
⭐ 17

Oslo’s food scene has flourished in the last few years, with many exciting new restaurants opening in what we’ve dubbed the “fun dining” segment. Young chefs have cast aside traditional fine dining tropes in favor of value-for-money tasting menus, casual dress codes, and loud music. The stand-out restaurant in this category for us is Panu, our current favorite spot in Oslo. Chef Anders Erlandsson was previously the assistant head chef at Alchemist, so he knows a thing or two about cooking – but whether this casual eatery is Michelin’s cup of tea is anyone’s guess. Previously, we wouldn’t have thought it possible for a restaurant like this to receive a star, but after Hot Shop and Hyde got stars in 2022, the landscape changed drastically. All preconceived notions of what a “Michelin-starred restaurant” is flew out the window. So, why not? A star is all about the food and not about fancy service, right?

The likeliest candidate for a Michelin star in Oslo, however, is the new Credo. Chef Heidi Bjerkan recently relocated her previously starred restaurant from Trondheim to the capital, and there’s no doubt in our minds that she’ll earn her star back at this year’s ceremony. Another restaurant we feel is a hot contender is Substans, the new restaurant from chef Håkan Wiik (formerly of Apostrophe). We liked the food he served at Apostrophe a lot, but our meal at Substans was even more elevated – chef Wiik is definitely closer to achieving those Michelin ambitions here! We’d love to see Palace Grill get a Michelin star, but after decades without one, it’s probably unlikely.

In our opinion, Oslo also has two new two-star candidates. À Laise has consistently raised the level since earning its first star in 2023. We have no doubt that a second star is in its future, and it has now been three years since Michelin first awarded them one. Similarly, the experience at Savage is sharper than ever – it’s now one of Norway’s top fine dining restaurants. Chef Andrea Selvaggini’s tasting menu is very personal, inspired by the places he has traveled, and celebrating the incredible, high-quality produce of Norway.

Outside of the capital, Speilsalen in Trondheim is overdue for an upgrade in star status. Chef Håkon Solbakk’s presentations are some of the most stunning we’ve ever seen in a restaurant, with flavors to match. Our meal last winter was absolutely fantastic. Also in Trondheim, Saga, the fine dining restaurant hidden in the back of Spontan Vinbar, is star-worthy. Chef Fredrik Engen’s food is rooted in New Nordic cuisine, using local, seasonal ingredients paired with ridiculously tasty sauces.

Another likely Michelin star candidate is Mirabelle by Ørjan Johannessen, from the chef who previously won the Bocuse d’Or. This Bekkjarvik restaurant was invited to this year’s gala, so a star could be on the horizon.

Further north, we predict that Kvitnes Gård in Vesterålen will get its much-deserved star this year. It appears that the Michelin inspectors finally made the trip to chef Halvar Ellingsen’s remote farm restaurant, and a star is imminent. Kvitnes Gård would be the northernmost Michelin star and the only star within the Arctic Circle.

Sweden

Total listings: 75
Bib Gourmand: 13
Total stars: 22 restaurants, 26 stars
⭐⭐⭐ 1
⭐⭐ 4
⭐ 17

Both Ekstedt and Adam Albin in Stockholm are long-standing Michelin-starred establishments that have generated a lot of buzz lately. Could it be time to upgrade either of these fine dining restaurants to two stars? Persona is perhaps the most promising new Michelin star candidate, from founders Louis Cespedes and Jonatan Nyström, who previously worked together at Frantzén. We visited Persona in 2024 and were really impressed by the high level of cooking from this talented and ambitious young team.

Further south in Skåne, Daniel Berlin returned to the fine dining scene with his stunning new restaurant, Vyn. Berlin previously held two stars at his former restaurant, and jumped straight to two in his new space – it’s only a matter of time until he gets the third. Vyn is one of our favorite restaurants in the world.

Another Swedish restaurant we think should soon receive a second star is ÄNG in Tvååker. The restaurant received its first star in 2021 and moved into a breathtaking new venue in 2022. Now, the setting matches the high level of food that chef Filip Gemzell and his team are serving, and we feel the experience is closer to two stars than one. In fact, the restaurant itself has the bones of a three-star restaurant, soaring into our list of top restaurant spaces of all time.

In Gothenburg, the likeliest star candidate is Bhoga, which previously held a Michelin star for a decade, before closing for renovations in 2024. Now it has reopened – and the experience looks better than ever. We also think that Human is deserving of a Michelin star. Chef Martin Moses formerly worked at SK Mat & Människor before opening his own fine dining restaurant. It’s easily one of the city’s top restaurants!

Finland

Total listings: 31
Bib Gourmand: 4
Total stars: 7 restaurants, 8 stars
⭐⭐⭐ 0
⭐⭐ 1
⭐ 6

We visit Helsinki every year to update our guide to the best restaurants in Finland’s capital. This year, we returned to Palace and had a world-class meal. We think Eero Vottonen and his team could be the first to earn Finland its first-ever three-star restaurant.

For the last four years, we’ve been saying that restaurant Grön is the next two-star candidate in Helsinki. Chef Toni Kostian and his team are serving some of the tastiest and most interesting bites in the Nordics, and we are crossing our fingers that Grön earns its second star at the awards this year.

Helsinki is also buzzing about Boreal, a New Nordic fine dining restaurant heavily inspired by Noma. Head chef Pasha Demin previously worked at Noma, and the restaurant follows many of the same themes as its Danish muse, featuring local ingredients, foraging, and ferments – this time with Finland in the spotlight. Could Boreal earn its first Michelin star after being open for only half a year?

Iceland

Total listings: 8
Bib Gourmand: 0
Total stars: 3 restaurants, 3 stars
⭐⭐⭐ 0
⭐⭐ 0
⭐ 3

Iceland currently has three Michelin-starred restaurants: Moss at the Blue Lagoon, Dill, and ÓX. Are there any new Michelin stars on the horizon?

Which restaurants do you think will earn Michelin stars at this year’s ceremony? Let us know in the comments below.