Italian restaurants keep their 3-star Michelin ratings

Whoops of delight across Italy as no less than six Italian restaurants have retained their top-three star rating in the 2011 Michelin Italy guide. The six are (in no particular order...)

• Sorriso di Soriso near Novara
• Le Calandre at Sarmeola di Rubano near Padua
• Dal Pescatore at Canneto sull'Olglio near Mantua
• Florence's Enoteca Pinchiorro
• Da Vitorio in Brusaporto
• Heinz Beck's La Pergola at the Rome Hilton

If that weren't enough there are a further 32 restaurants awarded two Michelin stars and a further 233 with a single star. So how does that compare to old blighty I hear you ask, well in 2010 the UK had a total of 4 (yes, FOUR) 3-star Michelin restaurants - this was cause for major celebration at the time -  and a total of 140 restaurants with any kind of star rating. You can read more about the sterling efforts of the Italian chefs here;
ITALIAN RESTAURANTS KEEP THEIR THREE-STAR MICHELIN RATINGS