A delicious meal can make even the best vacation better. Fortunately, in some of the world’s most incredible cities, you don’t even need to leave the hotel for an unforgettable dining experience. Here are 10 of the best hotel restaurants, where stellar dining options are never too far.
Benazuza, Grand Oasis Sens Cancun
This upscale Mexican restaurant in one of Mexico’s premier all-inclusive resorts puts new meaning to the phrase playing with your food. The creation of celebrity chef Rafael Zafra, this fine-dining establishment specializes in molecular gastronomy, a term used for a style of food-making that borrows techniques from science to transform ingredients in new and interesting ways. Guests start their epic meal with imaginative cocktails like an invisible margarita before diving into a 20-plus course experience full of unique rifts on Mexican classics. Come hungry and make sure you have plenty of time, as a meal at Benazuza typically runs about three hours.
GB Roof Garden, Hotel Grande Bretagne
Come for the food, stay for the view. This modern hotel dining treasure in Athens, Greece, is on the roof a historic 19th-century hotel that gives visitors elevated views of the Acropolis and Parliament in the distance. Michelin star chef Asterios Koustoudis founded this modern restaurant, which ups its dishes using fabulous Greek ingredients. Enjoy new twists on Greek dishes, including a moussaka-style lasagna stuffed with lamb and artichoke, as well as an oxtail risotto dish seasoned with saffron.
Parallel23, The Palms Turks & Caicos
This Caribbean resort is home to several culinary gems, but Parrallel23 stands out from the crowd of hotel restaurants. Dine in the outdoor domed hotel dining room where the only thing that rivals the view from the terrace is the food. Executive Chef Lauren Callighen wows diners with Caribbean dishes like citrus soaked ceviche with fresh mint and more unique offerings such as squid ink spaghetti with butter poached lobster, sliced black truffle and an artichoke cream sauce. You’ll likely encounter plays on Thai and Italian dining while you’re there, too.
BLT Steak, Bally’s Hotel & Casino, Las Vegas
Consistently ranked among one of the best steakhouses in the world, this surf-n-turf paradise also has one of the most incredible brunch menus you will ever experience. Available on Sunday mornings, the Sterling Brunch gives guests the opportunity to indulge in some delicious prime rib and lobster while sipping on unlimited Perrier-Jouët Champagne, mimosas and bloody marys. They also make gruyere popovers – airy golden puffs packed with gruyere cheese – that are worth the trip on their own. Oh yeah, and did we mention a New York Strip dry aged for 28 days that will rock your socks off?
La Mer, Halekulani Resort
If a blend of Hawaiian and French cuisines sounds awesome, that’s because it is. This incredible fusion of cultures is on full display at the AAA Five Diamond Rated La Mer in Honolulu’s Halekulani Resort. Standout dishes include mango and garden vegetable ratatouille king crab as well as roasted lamb with eggplant mousseline, pearl onion and lemon olive oil marmalade. Try a three, four or seven-course meal for an incredible culinary adventure at one of the most respected restaurants in the world.
La Pergola, Rome Cavalieri
You know what they say: When in Rome, eat a bunch of incredible food at hotel restaurants. That’s exactly what you’ll get at La Pergola at Rome Cavalieri, a Waldorf Astoria Resort. This mecca of European cuisine by renowned chef Heinz Beck is the only restaurant in Rome to have earned three Michelin stars. Choose from a seven- or 10-course tasting menu, which features dishes like duck foie gras powder (yes, powder) with red berries or a delightful licorice-crusted fish filet. Pair the delicious dishes with a glass of wine from one of the restaurant’s two esteemed wine lists.
Beach House, Westin Grand Cayman Seven Mile Beach Resort & Spa
With a more casual vibe than some other hotel dining spots on this list, the Beach House stacks its menu with foods with Caribbean, Mediterranean and Asian influences. Seafood shines on the menu with Executive Chef Sandy Tuason grilling up seared yellow fin tuna, tandoori Caribbean snapper and jerk marinated island wahoo, to name a few. Diners can go all out with larger, entree-sized plates or sample a number of creative dishes from the smaller plates menu. You can even reserve a table on the beach at sundown for the ultimate romantic dining experience.
Fera at Claridge’s, The Mayfair
Latin for “wild,” Fera in London designs its dishes to resemble the beauty of the British landscape. Stewed rabbit, salted cod and soup with cheddar dumplings are just a few of the appetizers. Glazed John Dory, also known as the St. Peter’s fish, is an entree option, as is aged Dexter beef sirloin and roasted hogget (sheep) loin with smoked eel. For dessert, indulge in a spelt cake with honeycomb and lavender or stout ice cream with fresh cherries and sour cherry curd. To see how the Fera magic happens, reserve the private six-person chef’s table called the Fera Development Kitchen.
Carolina, St. Regis Punta Mita Resort
As if the food isn’t enough, this world-famous AAA Five Diamond Rated restaurant in Nayarit, Mexico, is nestled on one of the world’s most incredible white sand beaches, giving off the pure essence of luxury to everyone who steps foot in it. Chef Jesus Duron flaunts Mexican gastronomy in a setting equipped with gorgeous views, a relaxing bar and an unforgettable outdoor terrace. Pair delicious dishes like single-bite pork chops and Nyarit sea bass with Mexican wines that are muy delicioso.
Ko, Fairmont Kea Lani
For native Hawaiian-style food called plantation cuisine, head to Ko, a hotel restaurant in the Fairmont Kea Lani, a tropical paradise resort stationed on 22 acres of land in Wailea on Maui. Start with a Red Rooster cocktail, made with bourbon, papaya, allspice, lime and siracha before a dish of zarzuela, a kettle full of lobster shrimp, scallops, mussels, clams and chorizo bathed in a saffron broth. For dessert, try the pao doce frito, a fried Portuguese sweet bread with coconut gelato and black raspberry jam.
Have a favorite hotel restaurant that didn’t make our list? Be sure to let us know in the comments section.
You can book a stay at any of the above hotels when you plan a trip with AAA and Travel Impressions. Learn about exclusive member benefits.
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The Pen in the Avila Beach Hotel in Willemstad, Curacao, offers fantastic food in their covered outdoor restaurant. Service is professional, the food i wonderfully prepared and the ambience is perfect. The hotel is located just east of downtown Willemstad, on the beach, of course.