Le Bernardin

Éric Ripert, who has been heading the kitchen at Le Bernardin since the early nineties, may do the occasional stint on TV show Top Chef, but unlike some other super chefs, he doesn’t have numerous outposts or commercial deals, preferring instead to stay in the kitchen of this hallowed restaurant. At lunch, the place can feel a bit corporate, since it draws a more serious business crowd (it’s in Midtown), but at dinner, the grand dining room, with light-wood-paneled walls, feels intimate and special. Expect impeccably prepared French haute cuisine; Ripert is celebrated for his seafood renderings, but he also has a delicate touch with meat dishes. Le Bernardin is one of the few New York spots to have been awarded three Michelin stars.