• Photo: Francesco Tonelli
  • Photo: Francesco Tonelli
  • Photo: Francesco Tonelli
  • Photo: Francesco Tonelli
  • Photo: Francesco Tonelli

Eleven Madison Park

Eleven Madison Park may be known for a lot of things, but dine-and-dash meals, it is not. Though the restaurant sits comfortably in Midtown South, New York’s bustling, go-go-go epicenter, the eatery moves at its own pace – and that is slow, steady, and luxuriously long. In April, Business Insider named it the best restaurant in America, and food critic Pete Wells from the New York Times called the 12- to 15-course tasting menu, which runs three and a half hours long and costs roughly $225 per person, the “most ridiculous meal I’ve ever had,” though ridiculous not in a way that offends or insults. New Yorkers may be famous for not having time — but New Yorkers have time for this.

The restaurant aims for a full-throttle experience. Its dishes not only tell you the story of Daniel Humm’s kitchen, they tell you about New York. Like Wells writes, what Eleven Madison Park “feeds your intellect can have the value of junk food, but what it feeds your mouth, stomach and spirit is something else. The restaurant tries as hard as any I know to bring delight to the table with every course. It succeeds so often that only the most determinedly grumpy souls could resist.”

Favorites like the foie gras topped with an asparagus gelée, egg quiche tartlet with morel mushrooms, buttery Atlantic Halibut with crayfish and smoked spring garlic have made Humm’s restaurant a city-wide favorite – even if it’s one they’ve got to plan to frequent months in advance. And though there aren’t any formal menus to have and to hold at the start of your meal, patrons do get two options: the main course, and the foie gras.

Reservations are a must, and Eleven Madison Park is open Monday through Sunday, serving dinner from 5:30 until 10 p.m. The restaurant serves lunch Thursday through Saturday from noon until 1 p.m.

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