"Ling Kitchen is a Chinese tasting-menu restaurant that's as committed to the presentation as they are the food. There’s one seating per night (at 6:30), and everyone dines around a long metal table next to the open kitchen where the staff prepares a procession of creative and show-stopping dishes. Fortunately, the theatrics aren’t just for show. Everything is cute and tasty—including lobster cream puffs shaped like a little mouse, or dumplings that look like sacks of gold. Seats are only available by reservation, and they tend to go fast." - nicolai mccrary, raphael brion