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An award-winning New York institution with landmark decor and great celebrity spotting opportunities.

Restaurants come and go but this New York institution with landmark decor by Philip Johnson seems to go on forever, and it is always among the top-rated for Continental food. The Grill Room is still the prime place for power lunches, and the Pool Room is a perfect setting for special occasion dinners.

This recently reopened 19th-century tavern is the former home of George Washington. The site features a restaurant and museum.

Sophisticated Tuscan food keeps this stylish room filled with Lincoln Center-goers at night.

Fans say this tiny café serves the best Italian food on the Upper West Side, at the most reasonable prices, which explains the constant lines.

Gigino’s delivers excellent Italian food from the Amalfi coast and dazzling views from the sophisticated dining room and the waterfront terrace.

Dim sum is the star but all the dishes are well prepared in this crowded, third-floor restaurant. Go in a large group to enable more sampling.

A perennial favorite. Alfred Portale was one of the first with “vertical food,” delicious layers so artfully stacked you can hardly bear to disturb them. The new American fare is elegant, and the lofty, columned space is sophisticated and casual. The $20 three-course lunch is a great buy.

Unpretentious fine dining where the inventive American cuisine is universally praised. Great desserts.

Another Danny Meyer success, this is perhaps New York’s most unpretentious fine dining. Tom Colicchio’s inventive American cuisine is universally praised. No reservations are needed for the less expensive Tavern area (see Gramercy Tavern).