OCEANSIDE — After less than two years in operation, Valle restaurant has become Oceanside’s first and only Michelin-starred restaurant.
The award was announced in mid-July with the release of the 2023 California Michelin Guide. Valle is one of six restaurants in the state that earned a star.
The restaurant was first opened in the Mission Pacific Hotel in October 2021 by acclaimed Chef Roberto Alcocer of Valle de Guadalupe, a region in Baja California, Mexico, known for its wine and cuisine.
Alcocer is also the chef of Malva, a long-acclaimed dining destination in the Valle de Guadalupe.
The chef has more than 20 years of cooking experience across the world. He began cooking in France, where the Michelin Guide was born. It became his goal to earn a star.
“I want to be the best at what I do,” Alcocer said.
The Michelin Guide is a series of guidebooks published by the French tire company since 1900. The guide awards up to three stars to fine dining restaurants: one star means a great restaurant, two stars mean a restaurant has excellent food and is worth a detour, and three stars mean a restaurant has cuisine so good it’s worth a trip there.
Alcocer and his Valle staff are thrilled about the star.
“We feel validated for all the hard work we’ve been doing for the last two years,” Alcocer said. “This is a dream come true.”
Through Valle, Alcocer aims to bring the tastes of Baja to Oceanside while maintaining his farm-to-table principles, such as a seasonal menu featuring California-sourced food.
Alcocer is pleased that his restaurant is putting Oceanside on the foodie map.
Aside from being Oceanside’s only current restaurant with a Michelin star, Valle is now one of two restaurants in North County with a Michelin star, alongside French fine dining restaurant Jeune et Jolie in Carlsbad.
Three restaurants in the city of San Diego boast Michelin stars — Soichi Sushi and Sushi Tadokoro, each with one star, and Addison, a three-star restaurant.
Dija Mara, another restaurant in Oceanside that serves Indonesian, Thai and Vietnamese cuisine, has earned the Bib Gourmand award from the Michelin Guide, which means the restaurant has great food for a great price.
Now that his restaurant has earned one, Alcocer and his staff are motivated to earn a second star – but this also means they have to work hard to keep the star they already earned.
Restaurants that earn Michelin stars could lose them down the road if they don’t maintain the same level of excellence. But Valle’s chef and his staff are up for the challenge.
Valle is located at 222 N. Pacific St., on the ground floor of the Mission Pacific Hotel, is open from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday. The restaurant is closed on Mondays and Tuesdays.
