Chef Daniel Humm rewrote the fine-dining playbook by swapping foie and lobster for beets and sunflower butter. The 10-course, all-plant tasting is still served beneath soaring Art-Deco ceilings that overlook Madison Square Park, and it remains New York’s OG three-star vegan experience. Ask about the à-la-minute bread service—baked mid-meal, so it hits the table still steaming.

Eric Ripert’s temple of “Almost Raw” and “Barely Cooked” seafood is the definition of polished French luxury. Jackets are recommended (but not required), and the progression from thin-pounded tuna to poached halibut remains textbook perfection. Book lunch if you want the same precision with gentler pricing and sunnier Midtown light.

Thomas Keller’s East Coast flagship stages nine-course chef’s and vegetable menus with Central Park framed in every window. A wine book thick enough to qualify as arm day rounds out the experience. Reserve the spacious salon tables if you’d rather graze on caviar bumps and canapés than commit to the full marathon.

The silent hinoki-wood counter seats a limited number of lucky diners for Chef Masa Takayama’s edomae omakase—one of the priciest meals in America and, many argue, the most transcendent. Expect toro so fatty it glistens and plates that vanish as quickly as they appear. Counter seats include the chef’s running commentary (and delicate humor) in between knife strokes—worth every extra dollar over the table menu.

Promoted to three stars in December 2024, Jungsik is now the first Korean restaurant in U.S. history to hit Michelin’s top tier. Modern banchan riffs (think crisped octopus with gochujang-aioli) meet French plating finesse in a sleek, low-lit room. Pairings lean heavily on small-production Korean rice wines—an education in jeong-in-a-glass.

Re-energized under Max Natmessnig & Marco Prins, this 20-seat counter hidden behind a grocery stocks caviar in bulk and plates French-Japanese mash-ups like brown-butter scallop, followed by buri tartare. Nab one of the four corner stools for the widest view of the culinary choreography.

Junghyun & Ellia Park’s story-card tasting slid to No. 1 on global lists, and the two-star rating feels almost quaint next to its global buzz. Expect Sundubu sweet shrimp with chili oil, served on ceramics as pretty as the plating. Arrive 15 minutes early for a cocktail upstairs—many feature Korean spirits you won’t see elsewhere in the city.

Spread across the 63rd–66th floors of an Art-Deco skyscraper, SAGA couples skyline terraces with globe-trotting plates—think potato-crusted madai or tableside Moroccan tea. Sunsets here make excellent proposal fuel. Book the final seating and savor petit fours on the terrace as the city lights kick on below.