"This upscale French spot on East Passyunk takes dishes you've eaten 50 times before and makes them feel fresh. Oysters wear pickled serrano and gelée party hats, monkfish sits in a kiddie pool of jet-black lobster velouté, and duck breast is cooked so precisely you'll want to read it a bedtime story and kiss its forehead. Come here to celebrate an anniversary or a fancy birthday—in addition to a la carte service, the restaurant still offers a tasting menu for around $100—but the mirror-lined space is also casual enough to walk in with a few friends." - alison kessler, candis mclean