South Australia now holds Australia's first-ever Michelin stars. At the launch of the new Michelin guide to the state, eleven restaurants received stars, 16 earned Bib Gourmand status (the guide's value-for-money tier), and another 50 were listed as recommended. The South Australian government paid for Michelin's coverage, betting the stars will pull food-loving tourists to Adelaide and beyond.

One new starred chef isn't sure he wanted the attention. Kyle Johns of Hentley Farm in the Barossa Valley told the launch crowd he'd moved to South Australia "for a quiet life" — a life he can now presumably forget, as diners flood in.

So should you plan your next holiday's meals around a French tyre company's stars? Yes — and no.

The case for Michelin is consistency. A starred restaurant, almost anywhere in the world, delivers a particular style: formal dining, lengthy set menus, technically precise dishes with a European influence, and a hefty bill. If that's the evening you want, Michelin rarely misses. The exceptions are rare but famous — Singapore hawker stalls, Japanese ramen shops.

The case against is that it's only one style of eating. For more variety and better value, the writer suggests looking at Bib Gourmand listings, which reward more relaxed and affordable spots, and at the World's 50 Best Restaurants list (now rebranding as "The 50") — though its main list skews formal too. Its Discovery list is a better bet for laidback, cheaper finds. Beyond those, there are regional heavyweights: Gault&Millau in Europe, Gambero Rosso in Italy, the James Beard Foundation in the US, plus local food bloggers and, yes, some genuinely knowledgeable social media creators.

The best advice, though, is to leave gaps. Over-booking means you'll only ever eat at the famous, viral, everyone's-talking-about-it places. Some will be superb, but you'll never stumble on a place that feels like your own discovery. Exhibit A: a bakery called Boulangerie le Pain du Coin in Montagne, a village of around 1,500 people near Bordeaux, with just 34 Google reviews, which produced what the writer calls the best bread of his life.

For travellers, the takeaway is simple: by all means use the new guide to plan an Adelaide food pilgrimage — the stars are there, they're credible, and they mark high-quality rooms. Just treat Michelin as one tool among several, and keep a night free for the noodle shop you wander past. That's often where the real holiday memories are made.