Food
Momofuku Ss�m Bar ~ korean fusion
Eleven Madison Park (*) ~ contemporary french
Kajitsu (*) ~ japanese vegetarian
Caf� Boulud (*) ~ french
Picholine (**) ~ french mediterranean
Marea (*) ~ italian seafood
* denotes Michelin stars
Epilogue: 5 months later, Marea and Kajitsu were two of four restaurants elevated to 2 stars, bringing our Michelin weekend up to 8 stars.
Review
Eleven Madison Park was best overall, with impeccable service, creative dishes, and delightful extras (macaroons). They even offered us a tour of the kitchen after lunch!
Marea's pastas are amazing - probably the best pasta we've ever had - and certainly lived up to the enormous hype
Picholine offered a refined dining experience with excellent service and well-executed courses
Kajitsu's innovative Japanese Shojin cuisine (all vegetarian) was interesting and surprisingly tasty
Momofuku Ss�m Bar had a very interesting kimchi apple dish, but overall seemed to be a bit overhyped
Caf� Boulud was hit or miss - great desserts and lamb, but had to send back a sodium-laden pasta dish