Eleven Madison Park
You will need to drain the college fund of your children to pay for a meal here, but there are many reasons why this restaurant is always at the top, or close to top, of the annual “50 Best Restaurants in the World” list. They start with drama. Few restaurants in New York, if not the country, have as magnificent a setting: a bar that glows, thanks to the actual gold-leaf on the ceiling, and a main dining room in a landmarked building, with cathedral-height ceilings and museum-quality wall-sized paintings. Then there’s theatricality in the food and the food service: Lots of dishes are finished tableside with great brio, and many guests are ushered into the kitchen to a special area for bites and views at some point during the meal (a fascinating tour). On our last visit, the sommelier decapitated our bottle of wine with a blowtorch, and then sealed the corked top in wax as a keepsake for us (it was an anniversary dinner). None of this would matter, or course, if the food didn’t hold up, but it does, and every course of the tasting menu-only meal will hold a surprise or a very rare ingredient like fine truffles. After several years of serving only vegan fare, Eleven Madison is now going the omnivore route once again, though it can give you a plant-based meal if you wish.
You will need to drain the college fund of your children to pay for a meal here, but there are many reasons why this restaurant is always at the top, or close to top, of the annual “50 Best Restaurants in the World” list. They start with drama. Few restaurants in New York, if not the country, have as magnificent a setting: a bar that glows, thanks to the actual gold-leaf on the ceiling, and a main dining room in a landmarked building, with cathedral-height ceilings and museum-quality wall-sized paintings. Then there’s theatricality in the food and the food service: Lots of dishes are finished tableside with great brio, and many guests are ushered into the kitchen to a special area for bites and views at some point during the meal (a fascinating tour). On our last visit, the sommelier decapitated our bottle of wine with a blowtorch, and then sealed the corked top in wax as a keepsake for us (it was an anniversary dinner). None of this would matter, or course, if the food didn’t hold up, but it does, and every course of the tasting menu-only meal will hold a surprise or a very rare ingredient like fine truffles. After several years of serving only vegan fare, Eleven Madison is now going the omnivore route once again, though it can give you a plant-based meal if you wish.
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