Fine Dining:5 of the Best Hotel Restaurants

“Often a hotel is simply a place to sleep. But the grand old tradition of hospitality excellence is alive and well in many of the world’s top hotels, who are as serious about outstanding dining as they are about service and comfort. Combining all three makes a special stay, and an exceptional restaurant can be a great excuse to stay in an exceptional hotel. Here are five of the best hotel restaurants leading the way in hotel dining.

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Le Manoir aux Quat’Saisons, Oxfordshire
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In the stolidly French Escoffier tradition, superchef Raymond Blanc’s stated mission at Le Manoir aux Quat’Saisons is hospitality perfection. If there is such a thing, the hotel and restaurant comes very close; Le Manoir aux Quat’Saisons has held two Michelin stars for more than 30 years – an extraordinary feat. But then eating and staying here are an extraordinary experience. Even the immaculate kitchen garden is legendary (the gardens are watched over by a bronze scarecrow modelled on Blanc). You stay here for one thing: the food. However, the rooms are crafted with the same genius and care as the menu, and it truly is a five-star hotel like no other in the beautiful Oxfordshire countryside.

If you want to see more hotels in Oxfordshire, visit our Oxfordshire hotel guide page.

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Epicure at Le Bristol, Paris
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Often mooted as the world’s best hotel restaurant, Epicure at Le Bristol Paris nails its colours firmly to the mast, declaring itself ‘defender of French cuisine’. And as the restaurant’s three Michelin stars prove, Epicure lives up to that lofty title. There are international influences on the mind-boggling menu (blue lobster roasted with curry, pineapple and spring onions), but head chef Eric Frechon is fiercely dedicated to French produce; Epicure only uses French meat, all of its fish is wild and dishes focus on classic French combinations (duck with cherries; veal sweetbread with anchovies). A meal at Epicure is a very special experience, but a combined stay in Le Bristol – one of Paris’s finest hotels – makes it a once-in-a-lifetime.

If you want to see more hotels in Paris, visit our Paris hotel guide page.

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Jean-Georges at Trump International, New York
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One of New York City’s top names in haute cuisine, Jean-Georges Vongerichten’s hotel restaurant at Trump International Hotel & Tower blends local American roots with classical French and Asian influences. That modus operandi is evident all over the menu in dishes like the madai sashimi with Muscat grapes, buttermilk emulsion and herbs. The hotel is still a leader in New York too, with some of the best views you can get of the city and Central Park. The view of the city lit up at night from your room is a fitting follow-up to a meal in one of New York’s best restaurants.

If you want to see more hotels in New York, visit our New York hotel guide page.

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Moments at Mandarin Oriental, Barcelona
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The Mandarin Oriental group takes its hotel restaurants seriously. Very seriously – the group’s London establishment is home to the two-Michelin-starred Dinner by Heston. That doesn’t faze the team behind Moments though. The Mandarin Oriental Barcelona’s flagship restaurant is headed by Carme Ruscalleda, who at one stage held six stars, and son Raül Balam. As you’d expect from a landmark Barcelona hotel, the menu is modern Catalan, with dishes inspired by and playfully named after the team’s favourite films (see the prawn dish: Forrest Gump 1994).

If you want to see more hotels in Singapore, visit our Singapore hotel guide page.

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La Pergola at Rome Cavalieri, Rome
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La Pergola is not only one of the world’s best hotel restaurants, it has probably the best city view of any restaurant you’ll ever eat in. If you can your eyes off Heinz Beck’s strikingly creative and vivid dishes you’ll be staggered by the historic cityscape that plays out in front of you. Sat on Monte Mario hill, Rome Cavalieri is an all-out resort with opulent décor that’s fitting for the chic Mediterranean cuisine produced by Rome’s only holder of three Michelin stars. Everything about a stay at the Cavalieri is luxury, but dining at La Pergola is a standout.

If you want to see more hotels in Rome, visit our Rome hotel guide page.“