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Le Bernardin When you visit New York and have to pick one fine dining establishment to visit, it's hard to bypass Eric Ripert's Le Bernardin. Being this the last night of my NYC vacation, I decided to end it with a bang and dine at Le Bernardin. Me and four of my fellow dining companions were set to embark on an absolutely magical meal. Bar Snacks While waiting for the rest of my party to arrive, I was served some breadsticks at the bar, but I only munched on one, as the last thing I wanted to do was to ruin my appetite. Mojito After deciding to partner up with Aaron of Destination Eats , we decided to split the Le Bernardin Tasting Menu ($138) and the Chef's Tasting Menu ($185). After that part was settled, I ended up ordering my cocktail of choice, the mojito. Minty, "citrusy," and a touch of alcohol (though I probably preferred more). It was my kind of cocktail. Amuse Bouche - Crab and lobster salad with cauliflower soup At first, I thought we were being served

Peter Luger When I was told the burger at Peter Luger was something worth going to for lunch, I figured it's a good excuse to try their steak as well. Since the burger was only served at lunch, thus I added Peter Luger to my lunch list. Bread Peter Luger Steaksauce Instead of butter, I dip my bread in Peter Luger's famous steak sauce. Fantastic, just wonderful. I think I want to get a bottle of that sauce next time! Luger's Sizzling Bacon Besides the steak, you order the bacon when you eat at Peter Luger, no ifs or buts. The thick cut of bacon was purely divine. I'd go to Peter Luger just to order this! Luger Burger Fries I want to say I loved the burger, but I didn't. It's a damn good burger, especially for something under $10. However, I liked my burgers at Minetta Tavern and Shack Shake a lot more. The fries are pretty unforgettable, but was heightened by the Luger Steaksauce. Steak for One This is why I came to Peter Luger in the first place, for the steak.

Per Se Thomas Keller has been a chef I've been intrigued about for a long while, and even though I've lived close to his famed French Laundry, I was in no shape financially to visit that place back in College. Fast forward to 2010 as I was picking restaurants to visit in NYC, Kevin told me I shouldn't miss on Per Se, thus I took Kevin's advice. Per Se When I made my reservation, I had a request with the menu. Since I had zero interest in the tasting of vegetables, and having two chef's tasting seemed quite redundant, I asked for a separate, and hopefully an offals only menu. While the offal tasting menu ended when the ex-chef de cuisine Jonathan Benno left for Lincoln, I hoped the new chef de cuisine Eli Kaimeh would have something up his sleeves. Per Se Arriving before at the 5:30 reservation, the restaurant was fairly empty, but by the time dinner service ended, it was definitely a full house. Gin Rickey Since I wasn't too interested in wine pairing, I went a