Venerable dining guide Michelin on May 4 expanded its menu of iPhone applications that steer users of the popular Apple smartphones to fine restaurants in cities they may be roaming.
Michelin programmes available May in Apple's online App Store include versions for New York and San Francisco as well as iPhone versions of the famed French guide's offerings in Germany, Spain, Portugal, Italy and Britain. IPhone programmes also work on iPod Touch MP3 players, which are essentially iPhones without telephone capabilities.
The software allows for targeted searches based on people's tastes or random browsing of rated restaurants. In an Internet-Age move, Michelin is letting iPhone users upload comments about dining experiences. Michelin, which is celebrating its 100th anniversary this year, still relies on trained inspectors for its vaunted three-star restaurant rating system.
Star-rated restaurants make up about a tenth of the guides, which have sections such as "Bib Gourmand" for diners interested in getting the most out of their budgets.