
L'Ambroisie - Paris
Classic French cuisine, a la carte only. Desserts were uniformly excellent, but the rest of the dishes varied widely from one to three-star levels - good luck in ordering “right” plays a big role in one’s experience

Arpège - Paris
Amazing mostly vegetarian French cuisine, creatively reinterpreting classic dishes. Ironically, the single non-vegetarian dish was the high-point of an excellent lunch

Plénitude - Paris
Enjoyable Mediterranean-inspired French cuisine with a focus on unique sauces, only marred by a rushed service more appropriate for a speed-eating competition

Le Pré Catelan - Paris
French cuisine with bold flavors and many excellent dishes. Add to that a beautiful park setting in the middle of Paris and you have a trip worth taking

Kei - Paris
French cuisine with Japanese touches. Seafood and meat cooked superbly, desserts amazing, but most savory courses ended up being just “ok”

CORE by Clare Smyth - London
Excellent French-British cuisine with mostly domestic ingredients; the only downside was the rushed service

Sketch (The Lecture Room & Library) - London
French cooking with sometimes unusual spice and ingredient combinations. Mostly successful, especially the desserts, but also a few misses

Hélène Darroze at The Connaught - London
French food with British ingredients that plays it a bit safe, without any truly outstanding dishes. Great service, beautiful dining room

Atelier Crenn - San Francisco
French-Californian cuisine that stays fresh with inventive dishes, most of them superb

Alléno Paris au Pavillon Ledoyen - Paris
A beautiful setting in the middle of Paris with solid modern French cuisine that occasionally is a bit heavy

Christopher Coutanceau - La Rochelle
Stellar French seafood cuisine in a beautiful setting. Some audacious flavor combinations, great service and an excellent wine pairing - a true three star meal

Cenador de Amós - Villaverde de Pontones
A few excellent dishes and a great wine pairing don’t justify the trip to this out-of-the-way restaurant in Northern Spain. Much of the food and the service were underwhelming

Les Prés d'Eugénie - Eugénie-les-Bains
Seasonal, light, expertly prepared French cusine in a palatial setting with wonderful service

Auberge du Vieux Puits - Fontjoncouse
Beautifully presented, delicious dishes in the Languedoc region of France: works of culinary and visual art

L'Oustau de Baumanière - Les Baux-de-Provence
Lovely cuisine inspired by Provence. Some dishes superb, most pretty good

AM par Alexandre Mazzia - Marseille
A firework of spices and flavors, but also uneven and an overwhelming number of dishes. Not your typical French fine-dining restaurant

Frantzén - Stockholm
Delicious tasting menu with Swedish and Japanese influences, and a well-thought-out overall experience

Zilte - Antwerp
Amazingly precise cooking drawing the best from all ingredients

Schwarzwaldstube - Baiersbronn
Delightful dinner in Germany’s Black Forest. French cooking with subtle German touches

Amador - Vienna
Tasting menu served in a wine cellar, with Spanish, Austrian and Asian influences