You’re either the type of person who eats to live, or the type who lives to eat. We’re definitely the latter. And if you’re like us, there’s nothing better than treating yourself to an outstanding meal every once in a while. If you’re willing to shell out a couple hundred for an unforgettable evening filled with good eats and delicious drinks, then check out this list of the most expensive restaurants in the world.
Listen, they’re pricey for a good reason. Trust us.
From fancy French cuisine to incredibly fresh sushi to restaurants that mimic Versailles and those that are completely underwater, there are some truly amazing spots to grab dinner out there in the world. If you can snag a reservation, we highly recommend you save up your funds to buy yourself dinner at any of these Michelin-star rated eateries.
The only negative thing about eating at one of these restaurants (you know, besides the fact that you’ll be a few hundred dollars poorer) is the fact that you may never taste food the same way again. Once you’ve had the best of the best, it’s hard to enjoy that garden salad you make for yourself every weeknight. It’s sad, but true.
1. Ithaa Undersea Restaurant — Conrad Rangali Island, MaldivesÂ
No, your eyes do not deceive you. Ithaa Undersea Restaurant is the world’s first all-glass underwater restaurant. Positioned 5 meters below the ocean surface, guests can literally eat their four-course lunch or six-course dinner while fish, sharks, and undersea life exists around them.
Although no prices are listed on their menu, Michelin reports that a meal at Ithaa can cost anywhere between $195 to $320, drinks not included.
2. Restaurant de l’Hôtel de Ville — Crissier, Switzerland
Just like in the fashion industry, Chef Franck Giovannini debuts a seasonal “collection” of fine dining experiences. For summer 2019, guests at Restaurant de l’Hôtel de Ville can choose from a limited menu consisting of crisped langoustine tail, a dish made with Parchemin Green Beans, and a fresh and festive tomato dish.
Allot several hours to enjoy your meal, paired with a fine wine, and also transfer a couple hundred dollars into your checking out. Dishes on the menu start around $70 and peak at $220 — and that’s not including drinks, people.
3. Aragawa — Tokyo, Japan
Beef lovers of the world, listen up. Aragawa in Tokyo is the place to go to taste the best of the best when it comes to Kobe beef. Cut from massaged sake-fed Wagyu cows, this beef is so luxe that a single pound can cost upwards of $800. The decor of Aragawa is a bit underwhelming, but you’re not there to be wowed visually. Rather, you’re there so your tastebuds can be tickled with the heavenly, buttery taste of the best beef you can possibly get.
Although you don’t have to drop $800 on a piece of steak, be prepared to spend anywhere from $261 to $313 for dinner.
4. Per Se — New York City, New York
To make a reservation at New York City’s Per Se restaurant, one must be willing to put down a deposit of $100 per head. If you want a more specialized Per Se experience, that deposit amount goes up exponentially (one private room experience requests a whopping $490 deposit. Wow!)
Once one arrives at Per Se, one can choose from two tasting menus — a nine-course chef’s tasting menu, or a nine-course vegetable tasting menu. And no ingredient is ever repeated in different courses. Impressive.
According to Conde Nast Traveler, one can expect to pay about $325 for dinner (that’s per person, btw), but according to those who have scored a reservation, the food is totally worth it.
5. Kitcho Arashiyama Honten — Kyoto, Japan
Dinner at Kitcho Arashiyama Honten in Kyoto, Japan, headed by third-generation owner and chef Kunio Tokuoka, will cost anywhere from $600 to $800. Fashioned like a traditional Japanese tea house, guests of Kitcho Arashiyama Honten sit on tatami mats and eat their fresh, seasonal dishes from low tables, each of which overlooks a lush garden.
Brb, taking a quick trip to Japan.
6. Guy Savoy — Paris, France
Chef Guy Savoy offers two lunch specials for around $280 (without wine) and $360 (with wine) at his eponymous restaurant in Paris. Guests can choose from dishes like “five-week aged beef paleron and marbled ‘basse côte’ Wagyu chuck, with a seasonal salad,” “iced poached oysters, concassé of oysters, granité of seaweed and lemon,” and “salmon ‘frozen’ on ice, hot consommé, lemon pearls.”
Fancy doesn’t even begin to cover the offerings at Guy Savoy. Just look at the food, below.
Guy Savoy. pic.twitter.com/ZKMvgtsYgE
— Guillermo Dávila (@DavilaGuille) February 13, 2019
7. Masa — New York City, New York
If you’re a fan of good sushi, then you should probably hit up Masa in New York City at least once in your life. Headed by Chef Masayoshi Takayama keeps his menu simple, fresh, and focuses on perfection. He lives and works in line with the “shibui” mentality at the forefront, which is defined as, “Refined beauty that isn’t affected by time or social changes. Shibui is never complicated or contrived. Purity of being, of living, of sensing is inherent in all elements of the Masa experience,” as the restaurant’s website states.
We have one theory as to why the chef looks so happy cooking and it’s pretty simple, he loves spreading the joy that comes with serving the perfect meal.
A night at Masa doesn’t come cheap, with most meals costing about $500. And, there’s a $200 cancellation fee for reservations. So, make sure to book that sitter months in advance.
8. Sublimotion — Ibiza, Spain
Dining at Sublimotion is not just about the food. Well, it is, but it isn’t. This 12-seater restaurant that’s only open during the summer at the Hard Rock Hotel in Ibiza offers a multi-sensory experience that marries the art of food with technology, theater, and music. There’s something new for each set of guests who dines there.
Because you’re basically traveling into the future when dining at Sublimotion, the experience comes with a huge price tag — $1,750 to be exact. Although it’s a dining experience that probably costs more than your rent, eating a meal at Sublimotion is truly something you’ll never forget.
9. Alain Ducasse au Plaza Athénée — Paris, France
Guests who dine at Alain Ducasse’s restaurant in Paris’s Plaza Athénée will feel like they’re either in a modern art exhibition or about to be abducted by aliens. Below massive crystal chandeliers, diners sit within stainless steel shells that are basically next-level restaurant booths. All this, and we haven’t even seen the menu yet.
The restaurant follows a “naturalness” motto, only serving the freshest ingredients and paying respect to nature by serving them with care. For example, one can order the refreshed brittany langoustines with golden caviar for $195, or the Atlantic sea bass ikejime, served with bonecrumb, French beans, and almonds for $145.
All dishes here cost over $100, except for desserts and the peas and carrots dish, made with veggies harvested from the gardens of Versailles. That only costs $85.
10. Ultraviolet — Shanghai, China
Ibiza has Sublimotion, Shanghai has Ultraviolet. Similar to the techno-dining experience of Sublimotion, Ultraviolet also treats 10 guests at a time to a multi-sensory experience. Created by Chef Paul Pairet, the menu at Ultraviolet changes frequently to ensure guests who visit experience something new, fresh, and unspoiled by online reviews.
Each guest is served 20 courses while totally immersed in a chamber that treats diners to music, video, scents, and simulations — oh, and really good food. A night at Ultraviolet costs about $598 per person.
11. Tetsuya’s — Sydney, Australia
A glass of wine alone at Tetsuya’s in Sydney, Australia will cost you $45, so be prepared for an expensive night if you make reservations here. The restaurant serves a pre-planned “degustation menu,” consisting of delectable eats like “roasted scampi tail with vanilla,” “wagyu beef sirloin with chestnut mushroom and WA truffle,” and “chocolate stone with honey & milk.”
Each person should expect to put down $240 for their meal. But for the supposed “best food in Australia,” as Forbes reports, that seems like a reasonable price.
12. Restaurant Le Meurice — Paris, France
Alain Ducasse is at it again. His Restaurant Le Meurice in Paris, France looks more like a room in Versailles than a restaurant in a famed hotel. Crystal chandeliers, gold filigree speckled all over the walls, and lush textures from the curtains to the table cloths, give guests the feeling as though they are dining amongst royalty.
According to Conde Nast Traveler, three courses and a selection of cheeses and desserts at Restaurant Le Meurice will set you back $445. So come prepared with cash.
13. The French Laundry — Yountville, California
The French Laundry in Yountville, California flaunts a menu that changes daily, and “commits itself to serving classic French cuisine with the finest quality ingredients, along with a similarly intense focus on impeccable guest service,” as the restaurant’s website states. Guests are served nine courses at $240 each and can choose from a list of wines that range from $50 to $100.
Well, we stalked them a bit on Instagram and the results have left us dreaming at our desks, while munching on Goldfish.
14. Arpège — Paris, France
Chef Alain Passard does not like red meat and only cooks with vegetables from his own organic garden, so you know you’re eating healthy when you eat at his restaurant, Arpège in Paris. For lunch service every day, his fresh produce boards a train from Sarthe to Paris so customers can taste the best of what the earth has to offer.
“Through these gardens, I have trusted nature with my creativity;” Passard writes on his website, “it is nature that dictates my actions. The most beautiful cookery book was written by nature itself!”
The nine-course tasting menu at Arpège costs a whopping $495 and the wine list starts at $70. If you check out their Instagram, you’ll see the only way you can go wrong on this menu is to never go at all.
15. Joël Robuchon — Las Vegas, Nevada
Situated in the Mansion at the MGM Grand, Chef Joël Robuchon’s French restaurant, decorated in a lush Art Deco style, is where the wealthiest Vegas-vacationers go to eat. He currently offers a 16-course tasting menu for $360, which doesn’t include the wine list. There’s also a private room available for seven or more guests, and it basically looks like you’re eating in the mansion of a mysterious millionaire’s estate.
We’re hungry and our wallet is already crying. But hey, our food bucket list just got a whole lot classier.
