IT is, you might say, cause for a glass of pre-prandial champagne. Scotland now boasts an extra three Michelin stars.

The 2009 food bible, which goes on sale on Friday, awards the coveted single stars to four more establishments north of the border - the Plumed Horse in Edinburgh; Sangster's at Elie; The Albannach at Lochinver; and Boath House, Nairn.

One restaurant falls off the list, Glenapp Castle at Ballantrae, while Andrew Fairlie retains his two stars at Gleneagles.

But of interest to Scottish gourmands elsewhere is the continued absence of Glasgow from the Michelin guide.

The city has had no star status since Gordon Ramsay left Amaryllis in 2003, concluding there was no market for fine dining in Glasgow. In the same year, Nick Nairn, then Scotland's youngest Michelin-starred chef, sold his eponymous city-centre restaurant.

So why the continued absence?

Scott Taylor, Glasgow City Marketing Bureau chief executive, believes Glaswegians' desire for value for money has made it hard for any restaurant with Michelin star aspirations to generate the kind of profit necessary to succeed.

"The decision to run a Michelin-style restaurant, I would say, is probably driven by the restaurant industry in Glasgow more so than it is from the Michelin Guide deciding whether restaurants in Glasgow are worthy of a Michelin star," he said.

"Michelin star restaurants are particularly styled. They cost a lot to invest in and develop and they cost a lot to eat in. Glasgow's restaurant scene is characterised by great restaurants, a very competitive marketplace and a discerning audience who want value for money. What that does inevitably is drive the average dining cover price down and that makes it more difficult for a Michelin star-style restaurant to succeed in Glasgow."

Brian Maule, owner of Chardon d'Or in Glasgow, was head chef at the world- famous Michelin starred London restaurant, Le Gavroche, for nearly eight years.

Asked last night why no restaurant in Glasgow had received a star, he said: "This is the guide's opinion. They decide, and it's very difficult to say what they are looking for. I don't eat out in Glasgow, so can't say whose restaurant is good, bad, or indifferent. "

In fact, one of the new star-holders might have put his finger on it. Tony Borthwick of the Plumed Horse in Edinburgh says on his website that "(I) moved to Glasgow in 1990 working in some well-known restaurants, but was disappointed with a lot of the standards and working practices."

Mr Borthwick, 50, moved The Plumed Horse to the capital two years ago after a long run in Castle Douglas where it was given a Michelin star six years in a row.

Last night he said: "I was lucky, I have got a very good reputation in the industry, but the star puts you back on the map. I'm chuffed to bits that we are in it. "

From The Albannach, where co-chef and proprietor Lesley Crosfield is now thought to be the only Scottish female holder of a star, comes a defence of Glasgow's culinary reputation.

She said: "I think to some extent it is because Glasgow is historically so well-served by restaurants at the level just under that Michelin radar. I think it is ready for one or two myself and Michelin, in its ponderous way, will get round to honouring that eventually.

"My impression is there are far more very good restaurants in Glasgow than there are in Edinburgh, where you go from sub-Michelin standard to having four Michelin-rated restaurants."

Ms Crosfield, 58, who learned to cook from a textbook, and her partner Colin Craig, 46, were last night celebrating after gaining their first Michelin star.

Sangster's restaurant in Elie is run by Michelin star-winning husband and wife team, Bruce and Jackie Sangster, who believe that high-quality produce allows for uncomplicated dishes.

At the Boath House Hotel, chef Charlie Lockley said he was "over the moon" after being awarded one star. In Scotland TWO STARS Andrew Fairlie at Gleneagles, Auchterarder ONE STAR Summer Isles, Achiltibuie Ballachulish House, Ballachulish Braidwoods, Dalry Number One (at The Balmoral), Edinburgh Martin Wishart, Edinburgh The Kitchin, Edinburgh Plumed Horse, Edinburgh (new entry) Sangster's, Elie (new entrty) Inverlochy Castle, Fort William Champany Inn, Linlithgow The Albannach, Lochinver, (new) Boath House, Nairn (new) Knockinaam Lodge, Portpatrick (new) DELETIONS Glenapp Castle, Ballantrae

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