When the recession hit in 2008, most restaurants swapped out caviar for comfort food. At Eleven Madison Park, chef Daniel Humm and general manager Will Guidara reacted in a different way—by doubling down on their goal of being even more high-end. Four years later, they are comfortably perched at the top. (The pair even bought the place from restaurant don Danny Meyer.) Today, EMP offers customers one choice at dinner: a four-hour, $195 prix fixe. Of course, nowhere else will you see a carrot ground tableside (a nod to steak tartare) or sturgeon encased in a smoke-filled glass dome (paired with caviar and cream cheese, of course). Greatness at this level is about the small things, too, and the restaurant executes those in spades. Flip over any plate at the restaurant and you'll notice it's been set so the maker's name is oriented for you to easily read. Every time. That's not an accident. The only thing that soars higher than EMP's 35-foot ceilings is Humm and Guidara's ambition.
#7: Eleven Madison Park, NYC
