A Guide To The World's Best Fine Dining Restaurants

Le Louis XV at the Hotel de Paris in Monte Carlo (2012)

Pavillion Ledoyen in Paris

Can Help Create a More Memorable Experience
While this may not matter to some, I like to see a refined elegance in a regal period or modern style that is rarified, enhances the cuisine, is inspiring but not distracting, and feels 'special'. Restaurants decors that are too austere, too fussy, or too industrial that distract from this high level of culinary art, are a few of my personal turnoff's than can spoil the experience. I want world-class decor or close to it. There are a few restaurants in the United States where I find the decor such a turnoff that I refuse to dine at them.

Often in bigger cities, one may travel to like New York or Paris, there are many options for dining, so after determining which have menu's and reviews to your liking, look at the decor. Is it a pleasing, impressive, and enriching experience, or is it a visual turnoff or distracting? I like to do an online search of a restaurant's interiors when there are none or too few interior images on their website to determine how I would rate the decor.  

The Decor And Tabletop Should Not Compete Visually With The Food 
The interiors should have neutral-colored backgrounds that are a non-distracting backdrop and complement the food on the plate. Bright or busy colors are confined to fine art on the walls and sometimes the plates or accent plates. I mean this idealistically, from my perspective, having designed numerous high-end commercial interior design projects.

If You Want To Familiarize Yourself With More Interiors
Start by studying the most stunning formal dining rooms with world-class ratings and then to the most understated to get to know what is possible and the best practices. Determine what you like and do not like.

Six of My Favorite, Most Stunning and Elegant Dining Rooms
Unsurprisingly, the French rooms are all classical, while all the American rooms are modern.

France & Switzerland  

  • Le Cinq at the George V hotel in Paris for lunch or dinner. The way I would design an updated yet classical, opulent, regal, and elegant space.  
  • Les Crayères 'Restaurant Le Parc' in Reims- the country home version of Le Cinq with Louis VXI wood-paneled walls and armchairs, rich tapestries, and bronze object d'art in a park setting.
  • The Restaurant des Rois at La Réserve de Beaulieu hotel in Beaulieu, France overlooking the Mediterranean- the most stunning grand room with a view for lunch in the world, in my opinion.


United States

  • Guy Savoy in Las Vegas, for its modern grandness with very high ceilings and extensive woodwork, is my American favorite for dinner.
  • Jean-Georges in New York on Central Park, with its bright, crisp, airy modern decor, is my favorite room for lunch in America.
  • Le Bernadin in New York City- a modern masculine room with Mies dark leather chairs, extensive custom woodwork from the ceiling down, and a very smart lounge area.

Keeping a list of your top favorite restaurants by interior design and your least favorites can be helpful in prioritizing your next fine dining restaurant travel. On my list are a few restaurants that I will never dine at with the current decor, as it would greatly impact the experience. Adding your favorite and least favorite restaurant menu's and other personal likes and dislikes in areas covered in this website should help shape your 'no go's' restaurants list.

The Restaurant des Rois at La Réserve de Beaulieu hotel, Beaulieu, France