Le Bec-Fin $$$

If you are very wealthy or working with an extremely liberal expense account, a trip to Philadelphia [2] isn’t complete without a visit to the city’s ultimate fine-dining restaurant.

Since it opened in the 1970s, George Perrier’s famous restaurant has been accepted by many as the city’s best, and it has consistently received the coveted Mobil Five Star and AAA’s Five Diamond awards, the highest honors in the hospitality industry.

It oozes elegance and sophistication—from the high ceilings and grand chandeliers to the attentive, well- coordinated tuxedo-clad servers. The French cuisine is fresh, elegant, and perfectly prepared.

The dessert cart and the cheese cart will make you feel that you’ve died and gone to heaven; you are encouraged to have as many as you like from the dozens of selections.

The reduced-price prix fixe dinner available Monday–Thursday is still a whopping $90 per person, not including drinks from the book-length list, but this is a substantial discount from the regular six-course menu. Jacket and tie are required.

Alas, if you’re not a trust-fund baby or a CEO, you can visit Le Bar Lyonnais lounge on the lower floor to enjoy delicious drinks and food from a far less expensive menu prepared in the same kitchen as the rich upstairs neighbor.