"Four star" restaurants generally represent the pinnacle of fine dining, at least in the eyes of many food lovers.  Typically, the food is imaginative and expertly produced.  The decor has likely been thought out carefully and undoubtedly expensively.  The service will be proper and usually formal.  Even in restaurants specializing in other cuisines, it can generally be best characterized as "French service." And, of course, the prices will probably soar as high as the food.

Sometimes this level of service and atmosphere can be intimidating -- but it need not be.  In New York city there are a number of restaurants that hold four stars from the nearly official arbiter of such things in Manhattan, the New York Times.  Others may be nearly there and aspire toward that goal.  In recent days I had the pleasure of exploring three of these establishments in the interest of comparing the experiences. 

I dined alone at Del Posto, L'Atelier de Joel Robuchon, and Daniel.  In each instance I sat in the bar or lounge area and sought to get the full experience that each establishment has to offer.  Solo dining certainly can have a tendency to exaggerate the perception of the food, service, and atmosphere because that becomes the diner's focus, rather than companions and conversation.  And, of course, these observations are based on but one visit to each establishment.  I have enjoyed the restaurants of these successful chefs and restaurateurs at other locations, but these were my first visits to each of these dining rooms.

My first stop was Del Posto for a Sunday evening dinner in their Enoteca, or wine lounge.  The contrast between the exterior and interior upon arrival represents a definite extreme.  Outside, you find yourself on a drab strip of 10th Avenue, but as you enter there are dual grand staircases ascending to the host stand.  The ceiling soars and the overall impression one gets is impressive, if a bit cool.  The intimidation has begun as you make eye contact a considerable time before you are able to mount the steps and speak to the welcoming hostess.

For someone who enjoys bar dining, Del Posto probably wouldn't be the best bet.  It was explained to me that the bar is "for drinks only," and the lounge seats are the only option for dining.  This seems to be less common these days, even in four star places, but the seating in the lounge is comfortable so I decide to go with the flow. 

Then the menu arrives, alongside absolutely delicious and fresh breads accompanied by soft butter and lardo (warm seasoned pork fat).   As you relish the salty fattiness of the lardo smeared on the bread, it is hard not to be intimidated by the menu itself.  It isn't that it is overly complicated.  In that sense, it is refreshingly simple.  Unfortunately, the menu lacks clear descriptions and many of the entries appear largely in Italian, none of them more than about four words long.  This leads to the intimidating experience of having to ask the server to explain many of the dishes.  This was an exercise I saw repeated around the Enoteca by other diners over the course of the evening.

As the food is served, you are rewarded for hanging in through the menu experience. The dishes I tried were rich yet balanced.  They demonstrated creativity within the confines of what seem to be traditional Italian dishes. As you depart, you may still feel a bit intimidated, but certainly you have enjoyed your meal.

By contrast, I was expecting L'Atelier de Joel Robuchon to be much more intimidating.  A French restaurant in the heart of the Four Seasons hotel in Manhattan wouldn't seem to be a likely candidate for a relaxed atmosphere.  Yet that's precisely what I found.  Certainly the service was formal and correct, but it felt less stuffy than that at Del Posto.  The fact that I was seated at the counter -- where over half the restaurants seats are located -- overlooking the kitchen likely played a role in this result, but it was also the personality of the service staff.  The menu, while offered in French, included English translations.

Many of my fellow lunch diners turned out to be regulars, but the staff did a great job of making everyone feel equally welcome.  A friendly back and forth continued between most diners and the servers as the meal progressed.  It was noted that the kitchen staff was a bit more tense than normal (and the line was more crowded as well) because Chef Robuchon himself was visiting from France for a few days and was in and out of the kitchen.  When the big boss is around, this is natural, but it didn't seem to make the front of the house any less gregarious. (As a side note, I met Chef Robuchon ever so briefly just as I was leaving and he seemed like a very pleasant fellow -- and it allowed me to work hard to recall a few morsels of the French I learned in school nearly two decades ago.)

Like Del Posto, the food turned out to be excellent.  I had more courses than I would normally consume at lunch in order to get the most out of the experience.  Even though it is a place that can be a budget-buster, the intimidation factor seems very low here.

I wrapped up this tour of four star experiences at Daniel on Manhattan's Upper East Side.  Again, I expected a formal and perhaps stuffy atmosphere, and at first it seemed like that might be the case.  My goal was to sit at the bar, but there are just five seats to be had and all were occupied upon my arrival.  Despite entreaties from the hostess to migrate to lounge seating (which she said would be more comfortable anyway), I held my ground and enjoyed a cocktail at a small table while I waited for a stool to open up. 

I am glad I waited.  The bartender, Xavier Herit, and the rest of the lounge service staff turned out to be excellent guides to my evening.  Ultimately, I spent nearly four hours eating, conversing, and experiencing.  The service here, while quite formal (the silverware was swapped between every course, even those pieces that had gone unused and would be needed for the next), again didn't seem overbearing.  The menu itself appeared mostly in English, with French used only where appropriate and necessary.

The food itself was again excellent.  One of the thing that struck me about all three restaurants was how they didn't become overly fussy about their foods.  It was quite easy to understand what ingredients were on the plate and even though I am sure there is extensive preparation in each dish, they all allowed the food to sing, rather than that preparation.

The bar at Daniel certainly seems to be a good place to sit if you enjoy that experience, though in fairness I should warn that there is precious little space for your knees because the overhang is a bit short.  The conversation with all of the staff was educational and enjoyable.  I was especially impressed by two things: the excellent cheese cart and assistance in making selections offered by one of the managers (it ended up being perhaps the best cheese plate I have ever had) and the fact that several people took notice of my interest in food and the industry and offered up a tour of the dining room, kitchen, and a visit to the famous "skybox" overlooking the kitchen where I had the opportunity to meet with Chef Boulud himself.

Del Posto, L'Atelier de Joel Robuchon, and Daniel all represent special occasion visits for most people.  Like most restaurants that have or aspire to four stars, the food, service, and atmosphere will be quite proper.  But some seem to deliver a greater intimidation factor than others.  In the case of Del Posto, one wonders whether their desire to achieve a fourth star perhaps causes them to be a bit more formal than the partners in that venture might otherwise choose to do (Mario Batali, Joe Bastianich, and Lydia Bastianich all are known for restaurants that provide excellent food and wine, but none that I can think of that would be nearly as formal as Del Posto).

Ultimately, though, all three restaurants provide an enjoyable experience if you are in the mood for four star quality Italian or French food.