Crème Bouley
The Crown Jewel of the Bouley Empire

Behold the new Bouley.

The last Bouley closed in 1996. It got four stars from the Times and the highest Zagat food rating ever recorded. If you've ever had a suit made on Savile Row, driven a super-charged Italian sports car or experienced the sublime luxury of bacon-scented bath oils, you understand. And you might want to think about making your reservation now.

Chef David Bouley's been out of the kitchen for a bit, but he's clearly been honing his chops. We've got our eye on a couple things, but for now we'll direct your attention to the Maine Lobster, the Baby Pig and the Roquefort Brulée.

But the space is what kills it. The opulent "library," with gold ceilings, an eye-level fireplace and a stone floor hand cut from Versailles, is where you want to be for big deals, magnums of red and the Dry-Aged Nebraska Strip Loin. If you want to pop some champagne or pop the question, retire to the romantic "winter garden." The skylights and hand-painted wallpaper create a scene made for a different kind of deal-closing...the kind that involves a European heiress and a waiting hotel suite. There's also a large private dining room in the cellar for the big group blowouts—extreme tasting menus turned gourmet orgies.

But we suspect the real party is in the red velvet ladies' room, which looks like a brothel run by Marie Antoinette.

If they set up a table there, we'd be there every night.