Best Restaurants You've Ever Been To

Hey Kerim, if you like Lawry's..... go to The Tam O'Shanter in Los Feliz. It's the first Lawry's restaurant and it's much better than the one on La Ciegena.

 

thanks jay i will try it out..I have been going to lawrys since it was at the old location where the stinking rose is at..but if you say Tam O'Shanter is good, i will try it out!! thanks!

 

All over the place here but here is my top 3:
The Ruins Ocho Rios, Jamaica
Del Frisco's Dallas, TX
Jerry Arenas Pizzeria Batavia, NY

 

Truluck's Restaurant in San Diego.

 

Let's at least get the guy's name right...and I disagree about the food.

 

You, my friend, have clearly never been to Chicago. Uno's is awful.

Agreed, we used to go there all the time when I lived there. Cosmos in Minneapolis (in the Graves hotel) is pretty good, too.

 

1.Craftsteak- Las Vegas location. Tom Colicchio's restaurant. Get the Wagyu beef!!! Best steak I ever had
2.Koi- Las Vegas location. I know what your thinking 'another restaurant in Vegas...but I swear they have some of the best restaunts packed into one city. Best sushi I ever had!
3.lewnes steakhouse - Annapolis, Md. Had to through a local place in there just for good measure.

 

French Laundry, which is in Yountville California.
Per-Se, which is in NYC, Columbus Circle
( Both are owned and operated by the best chef in the world, Thomas Keller)
and for a change of pace? the Rustic Inn which is in Davie Florida. It is a very rustic crab shack!

 

Nobu (Atlantis, Bahamas) and The Stock-Yard Steakhouse in Nashville (per my wife...the prime rib snob).

 

Doubt I'll ever make to either one of these, but for Keller-on-a-budget Bouchon in the Venetian Hotel Las Vegas was fantastic.
http://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_Review-g45963-d423139-Reviews-Bouchon-Las_Vegas_Nevada.html
http://www.bouchonbistro.com/

I had the Croque Madame (Toasted ham and cheese on brioche
with a fried egg & mornay sauce served with French fries) sitting at the bar. Never thought I'd say a grilled cheese and fries could be worth $19, but this one certainly is.

 

I'm a Keller groupie... here are some pics...from our latest trip to French Laundry... Chef Keller was super nice, and added 5 additional dishes to our menu... lunch ran from 11:30 to 4Pm!
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Yountville, a marvelous place.

 

guy savoy in paris was hugely disappointing. rushed service. should veal be chewey?
ed

 

Me and Chef Thomas Keller at the Celebration Car Festival in Orland Florida 2011
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Not exactly a restaurant but has anyone tried outstanding in the field? If so, what did you think? My wife is bugging me to go and at about $220 a pop not exactly cheap...

http://outstandinginthefield.com/

 

This one in Zakopane Poland
I'm going back until I've tried everything.
That's hot beer with honey. Sounds gross but it wasn't. I was really cold maybe that helped
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One of my favorites was Le Cirque in Mexico City, it was better than Le Cirque in Las Vegas both in food and service but unfortunately it is closed now.

The Mews of Mayfair in London is very good, and I really liked the decor.

El Sobrino de Botín in Madrid is good but the food is relatively simple. They have a delicious cake with white chocolate.
http://vicente.mx/food/1.jpg

Restaurant 7 Portes in Barcelona is also good.
http://vicente.mx/food/2.jpg

During my recent trip to NYC I visited a few restaurants but only a few are worth mentioning:

Balthazar had good/great service and the desserts were superb. The food was alright, but I did get there between lunch and dinner and they have a different menu for that hour.
http://vicente.mx/food/3.jpg
http://vicente.mx/food/4.jpg

The lobster raviolis at the Avra were incredible. They are the most perfectly balanced lobster raviolis I've had.
http://vicente.mx/food/5.jpg
http://vicente.mx/food/6.jpg

Babbo by Mario Batali truly impressed me. The service is among the best I've had, there is so much attention to detail.
The sardine was alright but I wouldn't order it again.
http://vicente.mx/food/7.jpg
Everything else though, was delicious. I also ordered the spaghettini with lobster, and beef cheek ravioli with liver and truffles. (I won't post those pics, I don't think you want to see half eaten food ).
http://vicente.mx/food/8.jpg
http://vicente.mx/food/9.jpg
For dessert I had the strawberry gelato with 25 year aged balsamic vinegar. The pistachio semifreddo is delicious. The tea is also the best I've had.
http://vicente.mx/food/10.jpg
The grappa tasting is a must, they had cherry infused grappa made in house.
I thought three hours to eat at Babbo would be enough time - I was wrong.

The "escargot style" oysters at Ça Va by Todd English are highly recommended.
http://vicente.mx/food/11.jpg

 

Davio's, there are 2 in MA and I believe Philly as well. I am a HUGE filet mignon fan and I was very impressed with Davio's. I had my wedding dinner party at Smith & Wollensky in Las Vegas, the food was excellent and the service was even better.

Ruth Chris was good but didn't blow me away. For meat/gluteny at it's finest, Texas de Brazil, I LOVE brazillian food! I have wanted to try Fogo de Chao but there are none in this area.

Best mexican food I ever had (which is not a ton) was at a place in Orange County CA called Telejo Grille, I got this carnitas dish that was to die for.

 

I enjoyed the Appellation in the Barossa Valley South Australia, great tastes mixed with carefully matched local wines...just wished I had stayed at the Motel so I could have enjoyed a little more Al K. Hol :-(

http://www.thelouise.com.au/

 

The French Laundry - napa
Le Bec Fin, Philadelphia
Gary Danko, San Francisco
M on the Bund, Shanghai

not in the same class, but very good:

Foursquare, Durham NC:

 

Had a quick look through here as i'm heading to LA, San D, San Fran and Vegas in March, so thought i'd post a few highlights for me;


The Ledbury - Notting Hill, London
Marcus Wearing at The Berkeley, Mayfair, London
The Wolseley, Central London
Waterside Inn - Bray, Just outside London
Chez Bruce, Wandsworth , London
Comerc 24 - Barcelona , Spain
La Alqueria, Seville , Spain
Rei Das Praias - Algarve, Portugal
Alain Ducasse at Plaza Athene, Paris
Le Chateaubriand, Paris
Talisman , Nairobi, Kenya
Carnivore, Nairobi, Kenya
Las Lilas, Buenos Aires, Argentina
Amber, Hong Kong (food is wonderful but i prefer eating where locals eat in Asia)


Worst and most over rated;
The Fat Duck
Alain Ducasse at the Dorchester
Yauatcha, London
The Cliff , Barbados

 

Ouch on Alan Ducasse.... I've always had a great meal at his places! Louis XV was my idea of heaven! I'll be in London this Friday, and looking forward to waterside inn... I'm not at all impressed with the Fat Duck menu... It's a miss for me.

 

His restaurant in Paris was as near to perfection as you get. His restaurant at the Dorchester in London was pretty awful the only time i have been. Now when i'm abroad i mostly stick to places where the owner is the chef and actually cooks there. Gordon Ramsey restaurants used to be absolutely superb, but he's more interested in being on the tv than cooking and as a result his restaurants have fallen from grace.

Waterside Inn is fantastic, but, even in this class of restaurant, prepare yourself for the bill - it's seriously expensive.

I think the best restaurant currently in London is the Ledbury. I'm not really a fan of tasting menu's, but this one is well worth it, it was superb. It was actually smashed into during a dinner service during the London riots and looters starting stealing watches + jewellery from the diners. The kitchen staff emerged with knives and chased the looters off and the guests were all locked in the wine cellar till it had calmed down. I hear they resumed and finished the dinner service.

 

Need to add The Pollen Street Social in London to my list after an exceptional meal last night.

http://www.pollenstreetsocial.com/

 

I've had many dining experiences from casual to over the top haute cuisine (as we all have) but nothing – no menu, no chef, no location, no experience – ever compared to the utopian magic created at this restaurant in Crissiers, Switzerland. I've been three times, over the course of 20 years and I cannot wait to go again.

I'm sure if God has a chef, they all come from here:

http://www.philippe-rochat.ch/