Town Restaurant

5 W 56th St Between 5th and 6th Av.

This lovely restaurant in the Chambers Hotel can seem a little spooky. Its waiters are always hovering and staring. It isn't intrusive when you notice that they are eyeing tables not snooping on customers. They watch every detail. If a glass goes a centimeter below its fill-up point, it is taken care of, immediately. I forgot my umbrella there one busy, crowded night, came back a short time later and they called me by name. Chef Geoffrey Zakarian's food is similarly fussy, as if a master interior decorator took charge of the palate as well as the plate. Town's prix-fixe dinners, beautifully match flavors and presentations. Pricey but worth it.