(From December 2009) Chef-owner Marco Wiles’s first-rate Italian restaurant—his flagship—can satisfy a multitude of appetites. One of us started with a rich black truffle risotto and followed that with a thick veal chop topped with a bit of olive oil, some roasted tomatoes, and arugula. The other began with burrata cheese and roasted cherry tomatoes followed by a grand slab of seared Alaskan halibut in a light tomato broth. We shared a side dish of great garlicky spinach. Beer & wine.

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(From November 2009) Thank goodness we got in one last visit before chef-owner Andrew Weissman announced the closing of Le Rêve. (He’s now focusing on new venture Il Sogno and is brainstorming other ideas as well.) Our last meal included a slider, but one with élan, i.e., foie gras, a bit of mango gelée, and oven-roasted tomato on a tiny brioche bun. Yes, we ate it with our fingers, even in the midst of the elegant surroundings. More-substantive items were just as enticing, like a melt-in-your-mouth pepper-crusted filet of beef and a rack of lamb deboned into a photo-worthy presentation with a fruit-studded pyramid of coconut curry couscous. Surprises like this have kept us coming back to this little jewel box perched above the river for eleven years—Le Rêve, we’ll miss you! Beer & wine.

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(From December 2009) Taking a trip to Spain was a good move for chef Avner Samuel. From a list of twentysomething tapas, we particularly liked the white anchovies paired with thin slivers of red piquillo pepper with a splash of basil oil. Likewise the signature “beef cigars,” crackly long cylinders of rice paper filled with beef and sided with dill and cucumber yogurt sauce. Of the more substantial dishes, we liked the lamb chop with its minty pesto and the oven-baked farm egg casserole, a mix of potatoes, tomatoes, Spanish chorizo, and onions. Bar.

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(From December 2009) Rain or shine, this tangerine-walled Montrose room is always inviting. Curious about the buffet offered for Sunday brunch, we were delighted with our first plate from the chaat table: puri with corn and mint and samosas oozing yogurt and tart tamarind chutney, perfect to nibble while sipping Kashmir Royales (lychee, lime, and sparkling wine). Fresh-from-the-kitchen salmon with green masala sauce and chicken cooked with black pepper and ginger almost filled us up but didn’t keep us from the apple-fig tart, touched with ginger. Bar.

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(From December 2009) If you’re offered fresh truffles, say yes; they made our paglia e fieno (Italy’s famous “straw and hay” pasta dish) sinful in the extreme. In fact, Tony’s can always be trusted to get the finest ingredients and treat them well, whether it’s buttery flounder with lump crab meunière or a hunk of beef stuffed with black truffle butter. Even first courses get assiduous care: A Bosc pear salad sports red and yellow endive, and burrata cheese elevates lovely heirloom tomatoes. Choose the intimate bar area for a more casual meal. Bar.

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(From December 2009) Dashing from our car to beat a looming downpour, we found the mood inside this pretty orange cottage refreshingly uplifting—the bar area pulsed with cool customers chirping and imbibing and swift servers doling out complimentary appetizers. Seated at the sushi bar, we had a wonderful view of the artists at work. Chef Tyson Cole is a genius; we couldn’t get enough of his madai (Japanese black snapper) with lemon zest and olive oil. Other standouts included mussels in a coconut crêpe with alfalfa sprouts and quince and maplewood-smoked baby yellowtail with yuca chips, Asian pear, Marcona almonds, and garlic brittle. That attention to detail extends to the servers as well, who always seem to know what you want right before you do. Beer, wine, & sake.

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(From December 2009) Bruce Auden, in his comfortably classy dining room overlooking the river, orchestrates dinners that sustain high notes from A to Z. We started with smoked salmon nachos (such fusion typifies the menu), only to have them bested by exquisitely flavorful habanero jerk scallops. Rack of lamb, substantial yet delicate, with fennel, “Expensive Mushrooms,” asparagus, and goat cheese, proved exemplary, while complex eleven-spice axis venison brought the meal to its high point. Bar.

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(From December 2009) Some of the simplest dishes here remain the best at this old house, like a brisk salad of arugula and roasted tomato and truffle egg toast. We enjoyed our spaghetti with mussels, leeks, and white wine (though the dish was not improved by the addition of chewy chunks of pancetta) and a thin-crusted pizza layered with prosciutto, mozzarella, tomato, and arugula. Our servers, though, were over-whelmed (as were we) by a nearby party of 25 high-spirited diners. Bar.

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(From June 2008) A seat along the back wall of this stately dining room is prime for watching the white-coated servers move through the room in a sort of elegant dance. We were dazzled by a creamy lobster crêpe atop a wonderful tangle of Bibb lettuce with shaved radishes and lumps of lobster tucked inside. Short ribs proved succulent but were outshone by tender medallions of antelope tenderloin on a bed of braised red cabbage. Bar.

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(From December 2009) As one of only two restaurants in the country to be included on Hotels magazine’s list of Great Hotel Restaurants of 2009, Fearing’s finds itself in exceedingly well-heeled company. And while its posh setting contributes greatly to the dining experience, it’s the food that really matters. We firmly believe that there might be revolution in the streets if chef Dean were to remove his famed lobster bisque from the menu, what with its warm coconut milk, sizzling rice, and lobster wonton floating on top. We salivate as we recall the fabulous mesquite-grilled wild salmon (from the Bay of Fundy, no less) with a spectacular peach barbecue sauce. Bar.

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