Known as one of the finest restaurants in the Country, Per Se is a 3 Star Michelin Restaurant and was a must for us during a recent visit to New York City. The location on Columbus Circle afforded spectacular views of Central Park!
Per Se Restaurant is owned by Chef Thomas Keller chiefly known for his French Laundry restaurant in Yountville, California. Per Se is supposed to be his interpretation of the West Coast icon. The experience was fabulous and we wanted to share what you can expect when dining at one of Manhattan’s elite landmarks.
Join us as we walk you through a 9 course journey from one of America’s beloved Chefs.
Arrival
The entrance to Per Se was located in the Time Warner Center on the top floor. Outside it’s doors were orchids and an inviting lounging area for guests.

We were warmly greeted and seated at our table with a view! On our reservation, I made such a request and thrilled they honored it. The Central Park view on Columbus Circle with the NYC skyline was fantastic, especially for several long hours of dining. Our reservation was at 5:30pm and enjoyed watching the sunset throughout dinner.

I love these detailed restaurants that think of every detail. Even my purse had a seat. Convenience is bliss.

In the main dining room, there’s only 2 tasting menus you can order. You can opt for either the Vegetarian or Regular Chef’s Tasting Menu. We chose the Regular and ordered the supplemented items as well. The supplemented items offered in various courses are an upgrade and have additional costs. Each guest has the option to supplement and it is not mandatory. One of us always supplemented in order to try everything on the menu.

Since we do not drink alcohol, they made us amazing house-made cocktails instead. They started us off with a bottle of Prisecco Apple Cider from Germany. It lasted awhile and then they brought other mocktails to compliment the meal.
Blueberry Ginger Mocktail Citrus Mocktail Prisecco Apple Cider from Germany
We love the Blueberry Ginger Mocktail so much, the server gave us the recipe and gave us great tips. To temper the spiciness of ginger, leave the skin on when you juice it. It tasted super fresh and delicious. I can imagine it would pair well with vodka if prefer to make it a cocktail.

The tasting began with an amuse bouche as usual for a 3 Star Michelin restaurant. An amuse bouche is a 1 or 2 bite hors d’œuvre right before your tasting menu begins.

Journey Through the 9 Course Tasting Menu
After the amuse bouche, the 9 course tasting menu begins. The first course I had the Oysters and Pearls and my hubby opted for the upgrade to the Royal Ossetra Caviar.
1st Course
Oysters & Pearls Royal Ossetra Caviar
2nd Course
The second course was delightful. Hubby had the Peach Salad and I upgraded to the foi gras. I was impressed by the international salts that complimented my dish. My favorite salt was the red one from Hawaii, although See Gris or Gray Salt from France was a close second.
Salad of Compressed Peaches “Gateau” Duck Fois Gras International Salts for the Foie Gras
3rd Course
Next came the Charcoal-Grilled Montauk Mackeral. We really like d the Italian parsley oil in this dish that kept the fish from tasting dry.

4th Course
I’m a big fan of scallops and was happy to see it was the 4th course served to us. I’m used to seeing whole round scallops, but this presentation of a partial large scallop was beautiful. It tasted just as nice too.

5th Course
The 5th course was the Bread and Butter course. If anyone can bake, it’s Chef Keller. He owns the famous Bouchon Bakery and his breads and sweets are dangerously delicious.

6th Course
The 6th Course was the Liberty Farm Duck Breast which I love and hubby upgraded to the Mascarpone-Enriched Sweet Corn “Porridge.” The porridge sounds funny but it was absolutely delectable. The server literally shaved table-side a whole black truffle into the dish.

Liberty Farm Duck Breast

7th Course
The proteins are from the best farmers in the region. In this course, I had the Marcho Farms Veal Ribeye and hubby upgraded to the Snake River Farms 100 Day Dry-Aged Beef.
Veal Ribeye 100 Day Aged Beef
8th Course
The last course before dessert was just ok. This was probably our least favorite. I’m not a big fan of pine nuts to begin with, but I don’t quite like the textures in this dish particularly.

9th Course Dessert!
The dessert assortment that comes with the tasting menu was phenomenal. Each person received fruit, ice cream, chocolate, pastry, and candies.

If you thought dessert stopped there, you’ll be pleasantly surprised to get a selection of bon tons in your face. You can select a couple pieces. We tried the PB&J and Burbon Chocolate bon bons.
At departure, they also gave us a box of shortbread sandwich cookies that were amazing. We ate them before I could even get a pic.

Hot Tip
There’s a 5 course menu available in the Salon room of the restaurant for those that are short on time or want less courses.
You must make a reservation to dine at this restaurant. Prime time hours are booked up several weeks in advance. Reservations are made through Tock where $50- $100 per person deposit is made for each person and applied to your final bill.
Prepare for a 3 hour dining experience and price of $355 per person. Optional alcohol pairing is extra.
Read what other travelers have to say of Per Se at TripAdvisor
This place looks amazing! I see why it was on your must do!! I’m adding it to mine as well!
Nine courses? Whoa! I will admit that I took a detour to find out why the California restaurant is called The French Laundry.
It’s worth a detour!
What a beautiful place to have dinner! The views of the city at sunset would be gorgeous, and the food looks so amazing. Thanks for writing about your dinner here! I want to go now.
Ill have to try this place next time I go into Manhattan. You should try the little owl.
I’ll have to check it out, thanks!
I’ve heard of and been wanting to go to the French Laundry for over 25 years, and haven’t been to the Napa Valley for years…now. I am excited to know that I can now experience similar to it in NYC where I travel to a few times a year. Curious what was the dish with the pine nuts…it looked very appetizing to me.
Book early for French Laundry, it’s almost impossible to get into.
Yum. Looks like a place I would like to sit for 3 hours and eat. I liked the orchid flowers.
Such an array of flavors and colors! It looks absolutely delightful!
What an incredible meal! I love that they had unique and interesting mocktails. Awesome tip about the ginger, I never heard that before.
Hubby made it and it’s awesome! A must try
Wow, that is an amazing dining experience! I love the Prada bag! The food looks amazing and I imagine 3 hours went by quickly!
What an amazing experience! Love everything from the food, the view and even the seat for your purse. This would be the ultimate date night when visiting NYC.
Perfect for date night!
Mmmm. How lovely.
I have to say I really look forward to the Micheline posts the most! I love the presentation and the experience looks amazing! I love that you also had a seat for your purse! I am in NY often so I will definitely be making reservations at Per Se.
Thanks Tricia! Enjoy NYC at Per Se next time you’re there
WOW! Their presentation is stunning!!!!
Wow! What an experience. I have a new life goal – to dine somewhere that has a seat for my purse! The food looked very interesting and delicious. I’ve never seen scallops that weren’t in a round form!
I love your posts on these dinners – it’s something I would probably never do, but really enjoy learning about. This one looks amazing.
What a beautiful lounge area. The food and cocktails look amazing!! Thanks for sharing!