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Closed for Renovations

If Edith Wharton were reincarnated tomorrow, she'd hop on an M1 bus and head to Café Pierre for dinner. This self-consciously old-fashioned restaurant (now owned by the Taj Hotel group, which took over the Pierre Hotel from the Four Seasons in mid-2005) has hardly changed a whit since opening in 1930. It still has the ambiance of an executive dining room at Versailles, with its devotion to chintz, damask, and wall candelabras, which suits to perfection its well-heeled clientele. Happily, it's got a menu to match. The Pierre salad is refreshing and simple; the pale pink fois gras, buttery and rich. Unless you're a vegetarian, order the kitchen's trademark braised short ribs, which are blissfully soft, slightly sweet and smoky, and served with lemon-scented potatoes. The roasted John Dory, accompanied by an artichoke barigoule, is good but not profound, while the Colorado lamb and Black Angus tenderloin are superb. For dessert, try the apple tart or the trio of chocolate soufflé, lemon sorbet and mille-feuille of crème brulée. And if your pockets are feeling particularly deep, go for broke and order an astronomically priced cup of Kopi Luwak coffee, brewed from beans that have passed through the digestive tract of Sumatran civet cats. For all its glamorous history, Café Pierre can still pack a surprise. — Nina Mehta

Jackets are required for men during dinner.

The restaurant's adjoining lounge has been home to singer-pianist Kathleen Landis since the mid-1980s. A beacon for regulars at the restaurant, Landis runs the gamut from Gershwin and Cole Porter songs to cabaret and light classical.

The exquisite Rotunda with its trompe l'oeil murals by Edward Melcarth serves one of the city’s best traditional afternoon teas (daily, 3pm-5:30pm) and a sumptuous Sunday brunch (noon-2:30pm). At lunchtime (noon-3pm), the lobster club sandwich is a perennial favorite on the French bistro menu.

Diver scallops, $37; fois gras, $26; Colorado lamb, $39