Velvet booths and dark-wood tables mirror the sophisticated menu at this 48-seat restaurant on a cobblestone street. Chef Mitsunobu Nagae, a Joël Robuchon alum, melds his Japanese heritage and French training in stunning dishes like grilled lobster with passion fruit emulsion and roasted veal loin with crispy sweetbreads. Pull up to the bar for a more low-key celebration with an a la carte menu and a glass of wine or sake or go all out with the chef’s tasting that has an optional wine pairing.

Korean street food gets the elevated treatment thanks to Per Se alum Sungchul Shim at this MICHELIN-Starred restaurant. Over nine courses in the cozy dining room featuring a marble countertop looking into the kitchen, Shim dazzles with a series of grilled skewers and kampachi bibimbap topped with wasabi chimichurri and an optional sea urchin supplement. Expect artfully plated octopus, trout, and pork katsu—all of which make for an ideal date-night celebration.

Food & Wine best new chefs Camari Mick and Mary Attea already made a name for themselves at MICHELIN-Starred The Musket Room, and here you can expect a swanky, white-tablecloth evening where a wood-fired oven is the star. Come for Attea’s hearty savory dishes like the lightly charred half chicken with salsa verde and stay for Mick’s showstopping desserts like the caramelized white-chocolate budino—perfect for birthday celebrations.

The River Café, which opened in 1977, was way ahead of its time, sourcing farm-to-table ingredients long before that was the norm. With its unmatched views of the Manhattan skyline, it’s also hosted more engagements, weddings, and business dinners than anyone can count. Book a table in the elegant waterside dining room for an exceptional prix-fixe menu that might include poached lobster tail in a Meyer lemon sauce, and pair it with a glass from the restaurant’s award-winning wine program.

Northeastern ingredients meet chef Fredrik Berselius’s Swedish background at this two-MICHELIN-Starred tasting-menu restaurant near the base of the Williamsburg Bridge. Located in a restored bi-level 1860s warehouse, the restaurant’s Minimalist interiors, with floor-to-ceiling windows, set the stage for a 12- to 14-course dinner. You might find venison with morel mushrooms or lightly grilled fluke with caramelized crab-shell sauce, but no matter what, it will be unforgettable.

Few omakase spots can rival the thrilling series of dishes (sometimes up to 20 courses) put out by chef Nozomu Abe at this serene, two-MICHELIN-Starred restaurant. Sit at the sleek wooden counter, and watch him plate courses that might include fried silver flounder topped with caviar, grilled sea perch with uni risotto, and hay-smoked katsuo fish with nori. The menu changes seasonally, so it’s just as exciting each time you return.

Salmon en croûte, schnitzel with lingonberries, and other European dishes are the stars at chef Markus Glocker’s cavernous NoMad restaurant. A bar inset in a massive clock is the centerpiece in a space that also features a giant chandelier, red leather booths, and brass countertops—all of that splendor will make you feel like you’re having a grand night out at a turn-of-the-century European café.

There’s no dearth of innovative cuisine combinations in the city, but one of the major stars on the scene is the Swedish Ethiopian seafood at this Chelsea gem. Celebrity chef Marcus Samuelsson melds his heritage and upbringing in dishes like berbere-cured salmon, brown butter scallops, and a crab- and shrimp-studded pasta. Bring a group to celebrate—the space is massive, decked out with mermaid murals on the wall, brown leather banquets, and wide tables.

New York has some of the best Indian food in the country, and no one does it quite as fancy as Indian Accent. There are tons of inventive, playful takes on South Asian staples like chicken tikka masala served as elegant meatballs, the restaurant’s famed burrata chaat that riffs on Indian street food, and ghee roast lamb with pancake-shaped flatbreads. For extra-special occasions, go for the three- or four-course tasting.

For an intimate celebration with super-attentive service, head to this MICHELIN-Starred Spanish gem just off Union Square. Chef Andy Nusser’s tapas are just as sensational as they were when he opened the restaurant in 2003. Make a meal worth remembering out of selections like confit goat, cod croquettes, and bone marrow with trout roe, and make sure to pair it with some Spanish wine—there’s a 600-bottle list to choose from.