My new home-away-from home choice for an overnight in NYC. Seriously considered not recommending it, only as it will soon become impossible to book a room. Once you step through the doors (actually, once one of the doormen, in their gorgeously styled suits by Bespoken usher you into the doors) of this lovely small hotel in an edgy neighborhood north of Madison Park, you're no longer in Kansas, Dorothy. Noted French architect and designer Jacques Garcia has infused a 1903 Johnson Beaux-Art building with the spirit of his childhood Parisian flat, and Daniel Humm has opened a restaurant on the ground floor where you can learn why Eleven Madison Park, just up the street, is one of the premiere restaurant destinations in NYC right now. You might even encounter a little low-key star power; we bumped into Tobey Maguire a block over at Stumptown Coffee before dinner.
The staff and service are impeccable, just the right combination of friendly and formal. Do check that they haven't booked the restaurant for a private event, and ask them to make a reservation for you a good 28 days before your stay.