<p>A tasting menu for two at superchef Thomas Keller's plushly impersonal 16-table dining room overlooking Columbus Circle will last three hours and set you back a cool 550 clams (and that's not counting drinks). So why are reservations harder to come by than courtside seats for the Knicks? Because, from the parade of Fabergé-worthy amuse-gueules to the hail of post-dessert chocolates in flavors like orange blossom, Per Se delivers the sort of polish, pampering, and obsessive attention to detail not found anywhere else outside of Keller's own award-winning Napa flagship, French Laundry. Expect Keller's legendary sourcing—quail, corn, and eggs from the smallest, most attentive farms in America—and his signature treats like butter-poached lobster, foie gras peach melba, and oysters and pearls (tapioca with Sterling white sturgeon caviar). That and the service, so classy, caring, and smart, will do more for your ego than years of therapy.</p> <p><strong>Tip:</strong> Try one of the restaurant's well-priced German Rieslings instead of a budget-busting California Cab.</p>
AS FEATURED IN...
From Food & Wine , AUG 2011
In February 2004, Island Creek acquired New York City's Per Se as a regular customer after one of Thomas Keller's sous chefs...MORE>>
From Food & Wine , NOV 2010
Ask Jonathan Benno why he left Per Se's French-inflected kitchen to serve modern Italian...MORE>>
From Travel + Leisure , APR 2009
Combine a view of the Columbus Circle entrance to the park with legendary chef...MORE>>
From Food & Wine , APR 2008
I was working at the world-renowned Per Se restaurant in Manhattan...MORE>>
From Food & Wine , JUL 2007
He uses them every chance he gets, often sourcing them from unusual places...MORE>>
From Food & Wine , MAR 2007
You'd expect more stuffiness from a place like this, especially because everyone is wearing...MORE>>
From Travel + Leisure , DEC 2006
...each morsel is uniformly delicious...MORE>>
Last updated August 2011




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