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Celsius

With a background at The Manse and Marque, Ayhan Erkoc aims to entice a new generation to glamour dining. His inventive menu achieves this at modest prices, especially five- and eight-course dégustations for $85 and $120. Celsius is relaxed enough to be a lounge hangout, to drink smart wines by the glass and nibble on pork crackling with yoghurt and cumin glaze. Presentation is uniformly dazzling, notably a “vegetable patch” of pickled and raw dwarf vegetables with snails, herbs and flowers, and a dense sausage of roast quail in a prosciutto skin. Some flavour and texture melds are questionable, but adventurousness is largely rewarding. The tight wine list has good Champagne options and a broad sweep of varietals. The room used to be a nightclub and it shows; some more work on the décor might pay dividends for the outstanding food.