Hotels with restaurants to remember 

Sitting right alongside long lie-ins, enjoying a meal to remember remains one of a hotel stay’s greatest pleasures. From a former Colombian convent where high-end dishes are served in a palm-fringed courtyard, to a cinematic Bangkok skyscraper with Michelin plaudits, these hotel restaurants and bars take dining and drinking experiences to the next level.  

Italian flamboyance meets Peruvian flavors

_{Palazzo Dama, Rome, Italy}
Unsurprisingly, hotel restaurants in the Eternal City tend to favor classic Italian dishes, so you might expect this 18th-century palace property by the Ponte Regina Margherita bridge to specialize in pasta and pizza. Not so: instead, its Pacifico restaurant is renowned for its Peruvian-Nikkei cuisine. From feather-light ceviche to red tuna tacos layered with tangy citrus cream cheese, its dishes are wonderfully delicate and unfailingly pretty. Italian extravagance instead comes from Pacifico’s grand decor, all intricate molding and chandeliers (also pictured top). For after-dinner drinks, the sultry Pisco Bar is seconds away.

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An on-trend temple to Mediterranean dishes

_{Moxy East Village, New York, NY} 
Restaurants need to go big if they’re to stand out in Manhattan, and the Moxy’s Cathédrale does just that. A triple-height room with an immense wire-mesh sculpture suspended from the ceiling, its huge scale explains its name, while its plant-filled terrace seals its standing as one of the most beautiful restaurants in N.Y.C. The menu measures up, too, with French-Mediterranean dishes that are indulgent and comforting (think rib-eye steak with rotisserie leeks, or Atlantic halibut with morel mushrooms). During happy hour, you can snap up $2 oysters and $8 champagne—a steal in a setting this heavenly. 

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A magic-hour spot with a masterful menu

_{Casona Sforza, Puerto Escondido, Mexico} 
With its bare-brick walls and succession of curved vaulted ceilings, this unique Oaxaca property is one of Mexico’s most distinctively designed resorts. Still, it has only 11 bedrooms so its restaurant, La Bóveda, feels wonderfully simple, intimate and homely. After working globally, its Venezuelan-born chefs were inspired to create a made-for-sharing international menu that makes respectful use of local produce— they’re big fans of Oaxaca’s warming vanilla and well-balanced coffee (and for dessert you should try the tangerine semifreddo). With tables facing the beach and cooled by a sea breeze, meals here feel magical. 

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French classics with a Quebecois twist

_{The Ritz-Carlton, Montréal, Canada} 
Welcoming guests for more than a century, this storied hotel deftly infuses Montréal’s European heritage into a dining concept long acknowledged as one of the best in the city. With acclaimed chef Daniel Boulud overseeing proceedings, restaurant Maison Boulud reinterprets French classics with Quebecois produce (cozy up by the indoor fireplace in winter; ask for a garden-view terrace seat in summer). Then there’s the people-watching on offer at the Palm Court, where a stellar champagne offering has been devised with Dom Pérignon and locals gather for special-occasion afternoon teas that feature the prettiest pastries. 

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A renowned rooftop to see and be seen at

_{The Hoxton Downtown L.A., CA} 
A mile from Grand Central Market, this century old beaux-arts building has become another Downtown dining destination. Locals flock to the rooftop to dine at Peruvian restaurant Cabra, where chef Stephanie Izard’s made-for-sharing menu goes big on wholesome produce and vibrant color—think tomato, satsuma and chorizo salad, or wood-fired eggplant with roasted peppers. Including bottomless DIY mimosas and pancakes with peanut butter and chocolate quinoa, weekend brunch is pure indulgence. For a warming nighttime cocktail, try the Cali Canelazo with rum and Peruvian spice—it’s served hot.  

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Hyper-local dining with the wine list of dreams

_{Hotel Healdsburg, Sonoma, CA} 
Ringed by tasting rooms, restaurants and bars, this refined wine-country retreat is a much-loved base for wine lovers and epicureans. When not roaming local wineries, they’re reliably found at the hotel’s celebrated Dry Creek Kitchen, where chefs make judicious use of small-scale local harvests to create a Progressive American menu that might feature wild mushroom ragout with slow-poached egg and bacon consommé, or zesty lemon cheesecake with pistachio. Of course, the wines are wonderful, too. With a 37-page list, expert sommeliers are well practiced in selecting the perfect pairing.

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Colombian cuisine and cool cocktails

_{Sofitel Legend Santa Clara Cartagena, Colombia} 
Occupying a converted 17th-century convent in the old town, this beloved landmark could well be Cartagena’s most charming property. Its allure is immediately apparent at the Jardín Santa Clara courtyard, where guests chat over coffee and cakes bursting with dragon fruit and kiwi, under orchids and palm trees. Restaurant 1621—a French-Colombian fine-dining favorite that does a sensational red snapper and saffron ratatouille—may be more prestigious, but it’s unpretentious. Just as chilled is Botika Bar’s third-floor terrace, where couples gather under fairy lights for cocktails served with views of the Caribbean Sea.  

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Sky-high dining with a claim to fame

_{Lebua at State Tower, Bangkok, Thailand} 
Even in a city with the culinary clout of Bangkok, the Lebua is special (and don’t be surprised if it seems familiar—it appeared in The Hangover Part II). Occupying a pearl-colored skyscraper, its restaurants and bars are clustered around the top of the building, so head-turning views of the city’s skyline feature frequently. Gourmets gather at Mezzaluna or Chef’s Table: both serve French fare, both are two-Michelin-starred. The world’s highest al-fresco restaurant, 63rd-floor Sirocco, serves up Mediterranean dishes and live jazz; while the rooftop Sky Bar is another scene-stealer. Order the whisky and apple-based Hangovertini.  

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A surprisingly serene foodie wonderland

_{The Bellagio, Las Vegas, NV} 
In Las Vegas, the Strip is all bright lights, razzle-dazzle and intense energy. And yet, just moments away, many of the Bellagio’s waterside restaurants provide patio seating that gives diners an unexpectedly serene perspective over this surreal city. From the high-end Japanese restaurant Yellowtail to the sophisticated Spanish favorite Picasso (decorated with megawatt works by the eponymous artist), various venues sit right beside the Bellagio Fountains, whose 1,000-plus spouts shoot water hundreds of feet skywards in time to music. With a replica Eiffel Tower as a backdrop, the effect is wonderfully kitsch, fun, and romantic.   

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The new kid on the culinary block

_{St. Regis, Chicago, IL}
Recently opened in a new landmark tower that is one of the tallest in the city, Chicago’s long-awaited St. Regis is the talk of the town. With its name meaning “view” in Japanese, hotel restaurant Miru wows immediately with its showstopper panorama—you overlook Lake Michigan, Navy Pier and the Chicago River from within and on its suntrap terrace. But it’s also already built a reputation for dishes that are exceptionally finessed and uniformly delicious. Alongside flawless sushi, look out for coal-roasted king crab with yuzu-soy aioli, and the signature black sesame mochi, made with charcoal-vanilla ice cream and sesame praline.  

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John O’Ceallaigh

Writer

John O’Ceallaigh is a luxury travel editor, and journalist with The Telegraph, National Geographic Traveler and many more. He is the founder of LUTE travel consultancy.